


One Week Together

by Meisteri



Category: Ib (Video Game), 霧雨が降る森 | Kirisame ga furu mori | Forest of Drizzling Rain
Genre: Challenges, M/M, One Week, dunno how to tag, just they're only minor, one house, other characters from other horror games are there, rape/non-con part is in chap 5, so didn't bother adding them
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-15
Updated: 2016-06-19
Packaged: 2018-07-15 04:56:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 7
Words: 25,724
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7208648
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Meisteri/pseuds/Meisteri
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the events with the Kotori Obake, the life of Suga Koutaro and Shiori Kanzaki went back to normal. Shiori had left to finish her degree and Suga continued to take care of the museum. After a few months had passed, Shiori went back to Azakawa village to spend her vacation there. Things were going great, though not much was happening...that is, until they received a letter.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue - The Start of It All

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own any of the characters in this fic except for OGY and Riza (that would be mentioned in some later chapter). This story was made for absolutely pure giggles and ended up with some kind of story so decided to post it.
> 
> Hope somebody enjoys it!

After the events with the Kotori Obake, the life of Suga Koutaro and Shiori Kanzaki went back to normal. Shiori had left to finish her degree and Suga continued to take care of the museum. After a few months had passed, Shiori went back to Azakawa village to spend her vacation there. Things were going great, though not much was happening...that is, until they received a letter.

Sakuma and Shiori were at the lobby, discussing some of the topics in the books they were reading. Suga wasn’t far from them. He was silently reading a book about japanese myths. Aside from the girls’ voices, the place was pretty quiet. They all stopped and looked at the front door when they heard it open.

“Ah, Officer Mochizuki! What brings you here?” Shiori immediately greeted upon seeing the face of the person who just came in.

“Hello there, Shiori. I’m here to deliver a letter.” Officer Mochizuki said, waving the white envelope in his hand.

“That’s surprising. It’s not often letters are delivered here.” Shiori mused, looking at the envelope with curiosity. Suga raised an eyebrow as he looked at the envelope in Mochizuki’s hand. Shiori was right. It was not often that letters are delivered here.

“What is it about?” Sakuma asked, looking skeptically at the letter.

“I haven’t opened it since I think that would be invading the privacy of the rightful owner of the letter...”Officer Mochizuki answered as he handed it over to Suga.

“Well, what if it’s a threat letter?” Sakuma asked, looking at Officer Mochizuki as if he committed a crime.

“It’s highly unlikely...but there’s only one way to find out.” He said. Suddenly, all eyes were on Suga, who was holding the letter in his hands. He took a deep breath and carefully ripped the side of the envelope. After that, he took out the contents, which was a map and a letter, and began reading the letter. Then, he blinked three times as if ensuring that he read it right.

“Well?” Sakuma asked, a bit excited.

“An invitation...” Suga’s deep voice was barely audible as he answered but they managed to hear it. . He wasn’t used to his voice yet. 

“Invitation?” The three of them managed to say at the same time. All of them had confused looks on their faces. Suga extended his hand towards Shiori, showing the letter to her. Shiori took it and began to read it aloud.

_“Dear Suga Koutaro and Shiori Kanzaki, Do not be alarmed. My name is Oswald Gibson Yrigan or OGY for short. I’m the head of a group called Finding Incredible Characters or FIC and we decided to gather people with horrific adventures and have them stay in a house for one week. There would be activities to ensure that you will not leave without gaining a new friend. We hope you come. P.S. Inside the envelope is a map that will guide you to the house. Thank you for your time and again, we hope to see you there. Respectfully yours, OGY.”_

There was a moment of silence. No one said a word for a couple of minutes. Sakuma decided to be the first one to break the ice.

“It sounds unbelievable.” She said, folding her arms across her chest. Suga nodded in agreement.

“I agree, as well...”Officer Mochizuki said. The three thought that they were all in agreement when Shiori spoke up.

“...Actually, I want to try it out.” She muttered. Suga narrowed his eyes in disagreement.

“But big sis! What if it’s a trap and you would be abducted or something?!” Sakuma exclaimed.

“You have a point...but...”Shiori said, a sad smile on her face. “It would be nice to meet other people who had encountered similar experiences...making new friends and sharing stories...”

Suga’s expression softened. Shiori must have been having a hard time not being able to relate the whole experience with other people like her friends in school. It is true that not much people experience that kind of paranormal events in their lives. He let out a sigh.Officer Mochizuki was about to say something when Suga spoke.

“We’ll go.” He simply said. Shiori’s face immediately brightened up. She ran up to him and hugged him.

“Thank you!”she said. A faint blush appeared on Suga’s face as he looked away, trying to avoid eye contact with anybody. She let go of him after a while.

“But what if I’m right and you’re heading towards danger?”Sakuma asked.

“I’m here.” Suga simply answered. He was sure that if something happened, he could protect the both of them. He started writing some notes. After he was done, he gave one to Officer Mochizuki and Sakuma.

_‘Take care of the museum for the mean time.’_ was written on it.

Officer Mochizuki nodded in understanding. “Alright. Just be careful wherever you’re going.”

“Okay. I’ll try to help in taking care of the museum.”Sakuma said, though she still looked a bit worried.

Suga nodded back. He gave the other one to Shiori and left to go to his room. Shiori held the note in her hands and read it.  
‘Prepare your things. We will leave once we are both ready.’  
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Soon enough, their things were in the lobby, all packed up in their respective bags. Suga handed Mochizuki the spare keys except for the one for his room. He didn’t want anybody to go inside there without his permission.

“Take care, big sis! If you can, bring back something like a souvenir.”Sakuma said and smiled.

“I will! Of course, I’ll try to bring a souvenir for you if I can find one.” Shiori smiled back as she picked up her bag.

Suga picked up his bag as well. He felt the handle of his katana to make sure he didn’t forget it. He was bringing it just for emergency purposes. And maybe because he had gotten used to carrying a katana when going out. 

“Shii-chan...”he called out. 

“Yes?” Shiori replied.

“Let’s go.” He simply said and started heading towards the door.

“Okay!” Shiori exclaimed, happy. They both waved goodbye to the other two left in the museum and went off to the place indicated on the map.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

The trip to the house wasn’t long, though the sun was already setting when they arrived. Soon, they were standing in front of a huge house, even larger than the museum. There was a ‘Welcome’ sign hanging on the front door. The lights inside were all on and Suga could see a couple of people moving from the windows. He went up to the door and knocked. There was a bit of shuffling behind the door then complete silence. 

Suga and Shiori looked at each other for a moment. They decided to knock on the door once again. This time, it opened. A girl wearing a highschool uniform was the one behind it. Her bangs covered one of her eyes and she looked a bit bored.

“Come in.” She said and motioned the two to enter. The two of them followed and went inside. The girl motioned them to follow and they did.

“My name is Yonaka Kurai. You two must be Shiori and Suga, right?” she asked.

“Y-yes!” Shiori squeaked, a bit nervous at being in a new place. She looked at the girl again. ‘She looks younger than me...If I remember right, everybody here has experienced something horrifying...’ she thought. Yonaka opened a door to a room to reveal a large sitting room. There were quite a lot of people there, with almost the same amount of males and females.

“They’re here!” one of the girls inside announced. All attention was then shifted to the newcomers.

“Wow...they seem to be a lot younger than me.”Shiori muttered. One of the people who caught her attention was a little girl that was sitting quietly on a chair, reading a children’s book. She didn’t look much older than 10, yet she was here. 

‘I wonder what kind of experience she went through...’ she thought, feeling sad for the little girl.

Suga silently looked at Shiori, who seemed to be preoccupied with something. He had to admit, he was feeling nervous with all the attention on them. A moment later, a guy with purple hair approached him and patted him on the back. He flinched a little at the touch.

“Ah, New guy? Welcome welcome~!”the guy said and smiled. 

Suga smiled back half-heartedly. He was feeling uncomfortable with the guy near him. He glanced at where Shiori was and saw that the girls had decided to introduce themselves already. He saw how happy Shiori looked and started to feel reassured. The guy guided him to where most of the males were. 

“I’m Garry, by the way. This is...”the man called Garry said and started to introduce the people one by one, giving a bit of information like who came first and who they came with. It seemed that none of them had stayed longer than two days. The uneasiness hasn’t gone, seeing that Garry’s arm was on his shoulder. He felt like he was a kid again. He was never one to do well in crowds.

“Hey Garry, I think he feels uncomfortable.” The blonde guy, David, spoke. 

Garry immediately removed his arm from Suga’s shoulders and took a step back. “Ah, sorry sorry!” he apologized.

Suga put his bag down and took out his notepad and pen. He started to write his reply. ‘It’s alright.I’m just not used to being around a lot of people.’ He showed the note to Garry.

“Ah, I see. Don’t worry! We don’t bite.” Garry said and laughed a little.

A guy with white hair who was wearing glasses named Hiroshi asked, “Not to be rude but can you talk?”

“Y-yes...”Suga muttered. He started writing another note and showed it to Hiroshi. Hiroshi started reading it.

_‘Just got my voice back a few months ago. Not used to it.’_ Hiroshi nodded. “I see.” He replied and left the room silently. After the whole introduction, everybody went back to their own businesses. Suga looked around for Shiori but didn’t seem to find her anywhere. He became alarmed and was about to run out of the room, hand on his katana, when Garry put his hand on his shoulder.

“Hold on for a minute! Don’t want to get lost, do we?” he said.

“Shii-chan...!” he looked at Garry, worry written all over his face.

“Shii-chan?” Garry asked. 

“Shiori went on a house tour with Ib and Ayumi.” Yonaka said as she approached the two. “If you plan on going on a house tour as well, you should do it now. Dinner’s going to be ready soon and I heard there’s going to be an announcement so we all have to be there on time.”

“Ah, I’ve been wondering where Ib went to...” Garry said, tapping his chin. 

Suga eased a little bit, knowing where Shiori was and what she was doing. He let go of the handle of his katan and took a deep breath. It was unlike him to act like that but being with a lot of other strangers, he couldn’t help but keep his guard up.

“Shall we go?” he asked Suga, a friendly expression on his face. Suga nodded. While they were walking out of the sitting room, Garry spoke.

“Say, I think I didn’t catch your name.”

“...S-suga..Suga Kotarou...”

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

“...So I guess that’s most of it! I’m sure you could explore the rest of the mansion without getting lost now.” Garry said as they finished the tour of the place. They didn’t explore all of it since the place was big but the essentials were all covered. Suga let Garry talk and didn’t say a single word during the whole tour. They went to the dining room and saw that they were the last ones to arrive.

“Ah, Suga-kun!” Shiori called out upon seeing him and waved, smiling. Suga smiled and offered a small wave. He noticed a brown haired girl standing next to Shiori who was looking at him intensely as if thinking of something.

“Ib! Did you have fun showing the new girl around?” Garry asked, to which the little girl immediately smiled and nodded. The little girl named Ib ran up to Garry and hugged him and Garry hugged her back.

“Oh, who are you?” Shiori asked, finally noticing the man beside me.

“My name is Garry. I’m the one who showed your friend around here.” Garry smiled and patted Suga’s back again. Suga’s look soured a little, still not used to Garry. Shiori giggled at the scene.

"Well then! I assume everybody is here?” a man entered the dining room, catching the attention of everybody in the dining room. A couple of people looked around, checking if there was anyone missing.

“Alright. Seems we are complete. Everybody, take your seats.” The man said and everybody complied. Shiori and Suga sat next to each other, Garry and Ib sitting somewhere nearby. As soon as the room settled, the man started his speech with an introduction.

“I am Oswald Gibson Yrigan. Please call me Ogy. As said in the invitation sent to you all, you are going to stay in this house for a week to get to know each other. Some others had arrived earlier so they had stayed here for an extra day. The main goal of this whole thing is to gain a new friend and to know that you are not alone in experiencing paranormal events. We randomly choose all you people from all the backgrounds we were able to gather and now, here you are. In the seven days you will be staying here, we will give you challenges in the form of notes. Sometimes, you have to carry it out alone or maybe with a partner or a group. In addition to that, there will be a special condition depending on the room you pick. Once you enter a room with your roommate, you will see an envelope on the dresser which will contain your special condition.”

“May I ask a question?” Hiroshi asked. “Are our roommates predetermined or do we choose our own roommates?”

“Good question.” Ogy replied. “Your roommate is predetermined and co-ed rooms are not allowed.”

Hiroshi nodded and listened as Ogy continued his speech.

“If you were to fail a challenge or forgot your special condition, there would be consenquences which may range from clean-up duty to wearing clown make-up. Aside from what I had said, there’s not much. Treat this place as your temporary home and have fun during your stay here. Are there any questions left?” Nobody raised any questions so Ogy continued, “Okay then! I’ll be announcing the roommates and then, we can proceed to dinner!”

“Finally!”A white haired man exclaimed, who seemed like he was wearing a school uniform. While Oswald was announcing the roommates, other people came in carrying dishes and started to place it on the table.

“...Shiori and Ib...” Ogy announced, which made Shiori smile. She did want to spend more time with the little girl.

“...and Suga and Garry.” Ogy finished the same time as the last dish was placed. He gave a smile and said, “Let’s eat then!”  
“Isn’t that great, Suga? We’re friends with our roommates already!” Shiori exclaimed, looking very happy with the arrangement. Suga, on the other hand...

Suga gave a half-hearted smile and glanced at to where Garry was sitting. Garry seemed to have noticed and waved at him. He wasn’t sure if they would get along being roommates. ‘Seven days...’ he thought to himself. ‘It’s just seven days...’  
As soon as dinner was finished and the table was cleaned, everybody started approaching their respective roommates. Suga noticed Garry and Ib walking towards him and Shiori.

“Looks like we’re roommates for the next seven days.” Garry said.

Suga simply nodded, adjusting his grip on his bag. He looked at Ib who looked at him with the same expression from before. Shiori sat down to her height and smiled. The little girl gave a small smile back.

“Wait here, Ib. I’ll just get our things from the sitting room.” Garry said and left. It wasn’t long until he returned with two bags, one with a rabbit face and the other being a simple navy blue backpack. They went on their separate ways, walking to the room they picked with their partners.

Garry and Suga silently walked down the hallway of the 5th floor, checking which rooms weren’t taken yet. They ended up with the room at the end of the hallway. Shiori and Ib’s room were just two doors away across theirs. They entered their room and found the basic things: two beds, a dresser and a lamp.

Suga placed his bag on the bed farthest from the door, claiming it as his. Garry put his bag down as well and started to take out some things. While he was busy, Suga saw the envelope on the top of the dresser and picked it up. He opened it and started reading the condition for him and Garry. After reading, a murderous aura came from him.

“E-eh? Suga?” Garry called out, concerned seeing that Suga looked like he was ready to rip the paper apart with his katana. Suga looked down the floor, his bangs hiding his face as he handed the letter to Garry. He read it carefully...then read it again...and again...

“WHHHAAAATTT?!!?” Garry shouted, loud enough to be heard outside.

_'Special condition: you have to trick the rest of the people by pretending to have a relationship forming between the two of you. You cannot tell it to anybody else.’_


	2. Day One at the Mansion - I Hate This Place

An uneasy atmosphere hung inside Suga and Garry’s room. Garry sat down on his bed, staring at the letter in his hand in disbelief. None of them spoke a single word to each other. All of a sudden, Suga picked his bag up and walked towards the door.

“H-hey, wait a minute!” Garry called out but Suga was having none of this nonsense. He slammed the door open and went out, only to see Shiori and Ib outside the hallway, heading towards their room.

“Suga-kun! Is there something wrong?”Shiori asked, concerned. 

Suga didn’t say a word and kept walking past Shiori. Garry came out of the room, shouting. “Suga! Wait!” He ran past the other two, hoping to catch up with the man who just left.

“Garry?” Ib muttered, noticing the flustered look on Garry’s face. This got her interest. Why did Garry look flustered?

“Suga-kun!” Shiori shouted. “Let’s follow them, Ib!” 

Ib nodded and they ran after the two men. They were able to catch up with the two near the entrance. Suga kept on trying to open the door but it seemed to be locked. Garry kept his distance, looking afraid. Suga probably pulled out his katana on him.

Suga was getting frustrated and banged his fist on the door. He slowly fell to his knees, tired. He wanted to cry so badly but he didn’t want to do it in front of Shiori. He didn’t want to let her see that he was still the crybaby he was before. He hated this place already. 

“Suga-kun...”He heard Shiori’s voice near him. Two arms hugged him from behind. “It’s alright...We could leave if you want to. Maybe the door would be open in the morning. Then, we could leave.” She sounded so sad and concerned. 

It felt like the time when they were kids, when a group of boys were bullying him. He couldn’t help it as a few tears escaped his eyes. He wiped it away with his sleeve. 

“Geez, Suga-kun...You’re still the crybaby I know and love.” Shiori joked and giggled. Suga looked back at her, a small pout on his face, earning another giggle. 

“Why does he want to leave?” Ib asked Garry as they let the two spend some alone time together. They stood somewhere near where the other two were but far enough not to hear what they were talking about. 

“Ah, it’s nothing. He just didn’t like something we discovered...” Garry said, trying to be vague. They had to keep the condition a secret, after all. 

“Oh. What was it?” Ib asked, curious. 

“Ah, it’s better if you don’t know...” Garry said, looking flustered again. This made Ib even more curious. She remembered Garry looking that way when she found that book in the gallery. Until now, she wondered what book was that... 

Suga finally calmed down and took out his notepad and pen from his bag. He wrote a note for Shiori and gave it to her. _‘I’ll stay because you looked happy when we came here. Don’t mind whatever you see, okay?’_

“If staying here is alright with you...”Shiori didn’t really know what Suga meant by the second part but nodded anyway. They both stood up from the floor and Suga put his notepad and pen back in his bag. He picked it up and started to walk towards where Ib and Garry were. Suga pulled out one of the most used notes from his pockets and showed it to Garry. ‘Sorry.’ was written on it. 

Garry smiled. “It’s alright.” He said and scratched the back of his head. “It was just an overreaction...” 

“Let’s get some rest, Suga-kun, okay? I’ll see you tomorrow morning!” Shiori said and gave him a kiss on the cheek. A faint blush appeared on Suga’s face as he was rendered speechless. Shiori giggled again and took Ib’s hand. 

“Come on, Ib! We haven’t even read our condition yet!” Shiori said. Ib nodded and they went on their way to their room, leaving Garry and Suga alone. 

“I see now why you were so affected by the special condition.” Garry said, a knowing smile on his face. Suga raised an eyebrow at Garry. 

“You like her~!” Garry teased, making Suga all flustered and blush a brighter red. 

“I-it’s not like that!” Suga spoke, not caring even if his voice cracked a little. Garry laughed and patted him on the back. 

“It’s alright. It never said that we both have to pretend. It just said we have to trick them. I think I can do that.” Garry said, though his words didn’t reassure Suga. 

Suga covered his face with palm, wishing there was a hole he can crawl into and hide. 

“You’re leaving tomorrow, as well...so problem solved!” Garry exclaimed, a hint of reluctance in his voice. 

Suga’s embarassment faded away as he looked at Garry’s face. He was smiling but there was sadness in his eyes. Maybe the man just wasn’t good with goodbyes. Suga let out a sigh as he took his notepad and pen out again. After writing, he showed it to Garry. 

_‘We’re both men. How are you going to pull that off?’_

“Don’t worry about that!” Garry said. “Some of the people here already think I’m gay so that makes it easy. Especially because of my use of ‘watashi’ rather than ‘boku’.” 

Immediately, Suga’s embarrassment came back that he couldn’t help but smack his face right into his palm. He started to write under his previous note and was about to show Garry but he decided not to. He paused and crossed out his first sentence, thinking it was too direct and sounded rude. Garry was starting to get curious on what Suga was writing until he showed it to him. 

_‘Seriously? You don’t seem to be. Just overly friendly and talkative.’_

There was a thick black line above it, which made it unreadable. Garry smiled again, this time looking more appreciative and sincere. “Thank you.” he said. “Anyway, should we get going to our room? There’s a long day waiting for us tomorrow.” 

Suga smiled a little and nodded. Garry wasn’t as bad as he thought he was. Maybe he could ask for a mailing address or an e-mail to stay in touch with him after they leave tomorrow. Maybe they could all hang out together or maybe invite them over to visit Azakawa village. He was sure Shiori would like to stay in touch with the little girl as well. They walked down the hallway, silent but the heavy atmosphere from before was gone. 

“By the way, have you confessed to her yet?” Garry suddenly asked. 

Suga’s face was red all the way until they got to their room. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

Suga woke up early the next morning, being used to his routine. He looked over to where Garry was and saw that he was still sleeping peacefully. Looking at the clock that was hanging on the wall, he checked the time. 6:00am. 

He went out of bed and fixed it up. After that, he opened his bag and started to put his things in the dresser. The sound of the bottom drawer opening woke Garry up. 

“Good morning...” Suga muttered, since his hands were full and he couldn’t get his commonly used notes from his pocket. He stuffed his clothes into the drawer, neat and tidy. 

“Weren’t you leaving today?” Garry asked, sounding genuinely surprised. He sat up and stared at Suga in disbelief. Suga closed the drawer after putting his clothes inside. He took his notepad and started to write. When he was done, he handed him the piece of paper. 

_‘I forgot to tell you last night. I’m staying.’_ Were the words written on it. He looked at Suga as if not believing a word written on the paper. Maybe he was still dreaming. He blinked a couple of times, waiting for him to disappear but he didn’t. 

Suga raised an eyebrow at Garry. What? Was he staying really that surprising?...Well, considering how he acted last night, it really is. 

“A-ah, I see...it’s nothing.” Garry said, a small smile on his face. He stood up from his bed and stretched. He soon noticed two envelopes sticking from under the door. One had his name on it and the other for Suga.He picked it up and gave the one with Suga’s name to the said man. 

Suga frowned a little at the sight of the new envelope. What kind of crazy order is written inside this time? He opened it and silently read the contents. 

“Seems like the challenges for today are simple. Mine is to gather 10 tomatoes in the garden at the backyard. How about you?” Suga showed Garry his challenge. It was the same. 

“Let’s work together. It would be faster that way. Is that alright?” Garry asked. Suga nodded as a reply. 

“It’s settled then!” Garry said and took his coat that was hanging at the headboard of his bed. Suga placed his katana on his belt again. Once they were both ready, they went out of their rooms. Only a few other people were awake that time. Shiori and Ib were one of them. 

“Ah, good morning, Suga-kun! Garry-kun!” Shiori greeted with a smile. Suga couldn’t help but stare at what Shiori was wearing. A full body orange tabby onesie. Complete with a red collar with a silver bell. Ib was wearing a similar one, only it’s a white cat with a blue collar and a yellow bell. 

“Good morning.” Ib greeted as well with a small smile. 

“Good morning...”Garry greeted, though like Suga, his attention was on what they were wearing. 

Suga pointed at what Shiori was wearing. Being with Suga for quite sometime, she can sometimes guess what he means. “Oh, this? It’s our special condition. We have to wear a costume for seven days, a different one for each day. Today is cat costume so we wore these! We found it in the closet in our room. Isn’t it cute?” Shiori smiled. 

Suga smiled and nodded. He was glad that Shiori was enjoying her time here. 

“You look cute in that costume, Ib.” Garry complimented. 

“Nya.” Ib said, making Garry chuckle. 

“Anyway, we’ll be going to the garden at the backyard to do our challenge for today. See you later.” Garry said and grabbed Suga’s hand, pulling him along. Suga looked surprised as Garry dragged him away. 

Once the two were out of sight, Shiori sat down a little to Ib’s height. “Alright. Good luck with your challenge for today!” she gave a thumbs up to the little girl. 

“Good luck with yours, too!” Ib said and silently followed the two guys who just left. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

Suga pulled his hand away from Garry’s once they were at the door leading to the backyard. He was going to write a complaint to Garry when he noticed that he forgot his notepad. He smacked his forehead for his forgetfulness. He’ll have to talk this time around. 

“Is something wrong?” Garry asked. 

“I forgot my notepad...”Suga mumbled. 

“Oh. Let’s go back and get it then.” Garry said and was about to grab Suga’s hand again when Suga stepped back quickly. 

“I-it’s alright. Waste of time. I need to practice speaking as well.” He replied, scratching the back of his head. They’re just picking tomatoes after all. It’s not like he needed to talk a lot. He opened the door and saw a field of of vegetables. Looks like this challenge really is easy. 

They went out to the backyard and saw several baskets with names written on it. A note was written near where the baskets were. ‘Return basket here after gathering vegetables.’ Looks like they weren’t the only ones who are going to gather vegetables. 

“Alright. We’ll be done in a few minutes. We only need to gather ten tomatoes each, after all.” Garry said as he picked his basket. Suga nodded and picked his as well. They walked across the field until they came to where the tomatoes were. 

“The big, bright red ones are the ripe and juicy ones, right?” Garry said as he headed into the patch. Suga was about to follow after when he noticed a sign. He decided to read it, just in case it said something important. 

‘WARNING: man-eating plants might be mixed with real plants. To differentiate man-eating plants from tomatoes, man-eating plants ‘tomatoes’ are bigger than your fists.Though, they won’t attack unless you touch their fruit.’ 

Wait...what?! Suga’s eyes widened after he read the sign. He was about to call out for Garry to warn him when he heard a high-pitched scream. He dropped his basket and pulled out his katana. He ran to where Garry was and saw him, sitting on the ground and cowering in fear. The tomatoes he had already picked were all over the ground, probably dropped the basket accidentally in surprise. The ‘tomato’ plant had grown bigger and the fruits revealed to be mouths with sharp teeth. 

In a blink of an eye, Suga charged and sliced the stem of the plant. Even if the power of night glowstone he used to make the katana was gone, he kept it sharp just in case. Good thing he brought it with him. The plant immediately turned brown and withered. 

Garry looked up at his saviour. The man in black faced him, the light of the sun seemingly making him look like he was glowing or something. He kneeled on one knee in front of him and asked, “Are you alright?” while extending a hand towards him. Suga was a bit embarrassed as his voice sounded raspy but he didn’t have his notepad to use. Garry took his hand and he pulled him up. “The sign was a warning.” He simply said as he pointed at the sign Garry passed by a while ago. 

“Ah, thank you for saving me.” Garry said, dusting his coat. He smiled at Suga. 

Suga nodded and wiped the tomato juice off of his katana with his handkerchief in his pocket. 

Meanwhile, in a safe bush nearby, Ib hid and was watching the two. Her challenge for today was to ensure that the two did their challenges and that if they were to get in trouble, she would call authorities. She saw the two acting weirdly before they went to the backyard, though she didn’t hear what they were talking about since she was a bit far from them but near enough to see what they were doing. 

‘Huh? What’s this?’ Ib thought as she saw the two started picking the fallen tomatoes. 

"Some of them got bruised so they’re no good...” Garry said as they picked the tomatoes from the ground. He was only one tomato away from finishing the challenge when that thing attacked him. How was he supposed to know there were man-eating plants in the garden?! Oh wait, the sign... 

Suga silently helped Garry. It just happened that their hands fell on the same tomato at the same time, making their fingers touch. Suga immediately retracted his hand and stood up. “I-I dropped my basket.” He said and went back to where he dropped it. Ib watched Suga leave Garry alone. He had a sad smile on his face which confused Ib. ‘Could Garry...that can’t be...’ Ib thought, a small frown appearing on her face. 

‘He really can’t get that special condition out of his mind, can he? Even when I told him I’ll handle it.’Garry thought as he watched Suga get his basket. He looked at the tomatoes that were still okay in his basket. Only four tomatoes. Suga came back with his basket, still empty. With a smile, Garry took two of his tomatoes and placed it in Suga’s basket. Suga looked at him as if asking, ‘Why?’ 

“It’s for thanks.” Garry said with a smile. “Now then, let’s finish this challenge and head for breakfast. Agreed?” 

Suga nodded. As Garry was reaching for another tomato, Suga noticed that it was a bit bigger than the other tomatoes. He immediately stopped Garry by grabbing his hand. 

Ib covered her mouth in surprise. ‘Suga is so bold. I should remember this so that I could finally convey my feelings to Garry...Next time, I’ll be bold, too!’ 

“No good. Those are not tomatoes.”Suga said, clenching his fist and comparing it to the size of the ‘tomato’. The ‘tomato’ was bigger. “If it’s bigger than your fist, it’s not a tomato.” 

“Ah, I see, I see.” Garry said. “Thank you.” The work was faster, now that they both know which ones to avoid. Soon, they had gathered ten tomatoes each. 

“Nice work, Suga!” Garry said and wiped his brow. Even if it wasn’t past eight in the morning, it was starting to get warm outside. They’re probably late for breakfast already but at least, they were able to finish. 

Suga smiled and wiped his brow as well. He was sweating more because he was wearing black. One of the advantages of living in Azakawa village is that it is usually cool because of the rain. He made it a goal for himself to take a bath immediately after this. 

Let’s go eat breakfast after this! We deserve it.” Garry proposed, while they were walking back to the mansion. 

“Ah, I’m going to shower and change first.” Suga muttered. 

“Alright. See you later then.” Garry said and placed his basket at its original position. After that, he went ahead. 

Suga silently placed his basket down as two other people went into the garden. It was a blue-haired man wearing glasses and the white-haired boy who was wearing a school uniform last night. He arranged the tomatoes in his basket a little so that it would look organized. He just got used to things looking organized, even if his notepads in his room weren’t. 

“Oi, Morishige, let’s do this quick. It’s hot out here.” 

“Mm. Let’s make it quick. Make sure you don’t mess up, Yoshiki.” 

“Eh? Who do you take me for?” 

Suga watched as the two men took their baskets and headed for the cabbage patch. Seeing that he has no business left here, he went inside. 

“Uuwaah! Why does this cabbage have teeth?!” he heard the shout of one of the boys. They probably made the same mistake of not reading the sign. And with that, he headed to the shower rooms. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

“Shiori-chan!” Ib whispered as she entered the storage room at the third floor. “Shiori-chan! Are you here?” She called out. 

“I’m here!” a voice whispered back. It was behind a bookshelf. Ib went there and saw Shiori, smiling. There was a window here where you could see the whole garden but too far to see much details. “Are you done?” Shiori whispered. 

Ib nodded. She took out the letter from this morning and read the last part on how to deliver reports. “Ib-chan, reporting. I saw...” Ib started to tell what happened based on what she saw. Let’s say the look of surprise on Shiori’s face didn’t leave the whole time.


	3. Day Two at the Mansion

Suga woke up early and found Garry sleeping peacefully, just like yesterday. He sat up and stretched his arms. Nothing much happened yesterday except for the tomato picking challenge. Though, Shiori looked like she wanted to ask him something yesterday but she never did. Oh well, maybe it wasn’t that important. 

He decided to walk outside at the garden to get some morning fresh air. Thinking that it might be hot again, he wore a plain white t-shirt he brought along. His closet didn’t consist of all black, after all. He left a note for Garry, telling him that he took a walk in the garden. This time, he didn’t forget to bring his notepad and pen along with his katana. 

When he opened the door, he saw a row of envelopes in the middle of the hallway. A huge sign was placed among it. ‘Pick one. What you pick determines your challenge for today.’ 

Suga examined the envelopes first. All of them looked identical to each other. He thought for a while and decided to pick one. He stared at it for a moment and slowly opened it. It gave off a sickeningly sweet smell. It made him a bit dizzy. When he took out the letter, it only came off stronger. There was only a single word written on it. ‘Victim’. It was just then when he realized it was too late. His knees gave under him and he fell to the floor with a thud. He saw a shadow looming over him before he lost consciousness. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

Garry woke up and yawned. He sat up and stretched his arms above his head. He then looked at the time. It was 8:00am. He was late for breakfast but it’s not that bad. He saw Suga’s note on the table and read it. ‘Out for a walk in the garden’. 

‘He wakes up really early.’ Garry thought as he placed it back. ‘I wonder if he is finshed with the challenge for today.’ 

As soon as he was prepared, he went out of their room. The first thing he noticed was a single envelope in the middle of the hallway and a huge sign. ‘Pick one. What you pick determines your challenge for today.’ 

“Well, there’s only one left.”he said and picked it up. He opened it and read the content. ‘You are a...hero! Try to find where the victims are and save them! Beware, there are villains who will try to trick you and lead you to a trap! If you manage to save a victim, they will give you a reward!’ 

“Wow, the challenge today is a lot different from yesterday. I wonder what Suga got.”Garry mused to himself as he put the letter in his coat pocket. He decided to go to the dining room and have breakfast first before starting his challenge. 

“SHINOZAKI! SHINOZAKI!” he heard one of the boys shout. It was Yoshiki. He shouted the name over and over again until he noticed Garry. 

“Ah, have you seen Ayumi Shinozaki? Blue-haired girl? I’m not sure how she wore her hair today but she usually ties it up in two pigtails...”Yoshiki asked. 

“I haven’t. Why?” Garry asked. 

“I see, thank you. I’m looking for her because it’s for today’s challenge.” Yoshiki said. “Oh yeah, can I ask you something else?” 

“Sure.” Garry smiled. 

“Are you a hero?” he asked. Garry nodded and said yes. “Great! I’m a hero, too! Let’s team up and look for the victims!” Yoshiki grabbed Garry’s hand and pulled him towards the sitting room. When they got there, there were a couple of other people, looking dejected. Garry saw Shiori wearing a magical girl outfit but saw no sign of Suga and Ib. 

“Oi, guys! I found another hero!” Yoshiki shouted as he dragged Garry with him. 

“Ah! Garry-kun! Have you seen Suga-kun and Ib-chan?” Shiori asked. 

“No. Suga left me a note saying he took a walk in the garden but I don’t know what time he left. And I thought Ib was with you.” Garry answered. “You haven’t seen them?” 

Shiori shook her head. “Could they be...one of the victims?!” she gasped. It was just now that the thought occured to Garry. Could Suga really be one of the victims? It seemed highly unlikely. If it was Ib, then he would say yes. 

“Well, they could be victims...or villains.” The youngest of the males, Allen, said. 

“If Suga’s a villain, he’ll be hard to get through.” Garry said, remembering the incident yesterday. “He’s really good with his katana.” 

“We can’t waste anymore time here. If I remember right, the victims were taken before breakfast. No doubt they’re already hungry.” Yoshiki said. 

“Mm. Big brother must be hungry.”Yuka said, concerned for his big brother Satoshi. 

“Alright then. Let’s split up. Everybody, get a partner and pick where you’re going to search. There are seven floors in this mansion, counting the two floors beneath. The doors to the basement are locked, though, so you’ll still need to find a key. Each group should take one floor to explore. That should be clear, right?” Seitaro instructed. 

“Still a smartass.” Rin muttered. “Alright!” she shouted, standing up. “Let’s get moving then.” She immediately partnered up with Seitaro and left the room. Those who already found a partner also left the room. 

“Let’s partner up, Shiori. After all, our friends might be in some kind of danger.” Garry said and held his hand out to Shiori. She only smiled at him. 

“Ah, I already have a partner. Right, Yuka?” Shiori called out. 

“Huh? Ah, yes! Shii-chan and I are partners already!” Yuka exclaimed. She ran up to Shiori and grabbed her hand. “Let’s go, Shii-chan!” 

“Mm. See you later, Garry! Let’s do our best!” she said and they both left the sitting room. Garry and Yoshiki ended up as partners instead. And so, the search began. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

Suga slowly regained consciousness and found himself in the middle of a dark room. He tried to move but discovered that his hands were tied behind his back. He looked at his belt and saw that his notepad and katana were taken away. He struggled against the binds, trying to get himself free. It was useless, though. The binds were too tight. He closed his eyes and tried to think of a way to get free. Maybe he could find a way if he manages to stand up. 

Having thought of a resolve, he opened his eyes and started to inch towards the wall. It was a slow process but he managed to get to the wall. He pushed his back against it and slowly tried to slide upwards. The wall was a bit rough, making it a bit painful but Suga ignored the pain and continued sliding up by pushing himself towards the wall. His plan worked and he was standing on his two feet. Now to find a way to get the ropes off of his hands. But first, he needed to find a source of a light to examine his surroundings. 

He kept close to the walls, trying to find a light switch. He found where the door was and took a mental note of it. He also found a shelf and couple of barrels but no light switch. He sighed. He decided to see if the door was locked when he bumped against the shelf. He heard the sound of breaking glass. This gave him another idea. 

He crouched down and tried to feel for the glass shards. He winced a little as he felt a bit of pain at the end of his finger. He grabbed it and started to rub it against the ropes binding him. He could feel something wet in his hands but decided to ignore that as well. It wasn’t long until he was free. 

Suga dropped the glass shard he was holding and rubbed his wrists, feeling sore from being tied up. He winced when he clenched his right hand. Seems like he wounded himself. Thankfully, the handkerchief in his pocket was still there. He tied it around the wound. He’ll treat it once he gets out of here. 

He quietly approached the door and tested the door knob. It wasn’t locked. He opened it and went out of the room. There was some light coming from the lanterns hanging from the ceiling. Now, to find out where he is, find his katana and notepad, and get out of this place. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

Garry and Yoshiki walked around the third floor, looking for signs of the victims. “Suga! Ib! Ayumi!” the two shouted as they walked along the corridor. They had already checked most of the rooms here and were getting tired. 

“Ah, where could they be?” Yoshiki complained as he scratched his head. “It’s almost noon and we still haven’t found a clue to where they are OR where the key to the basement is.” 

Garry sighed. “Let’s go back to the sitting room. Maybe the others found something.” 

Yoshiki nodded and the two went back to the sitting room, only to find that no one was back yet. They stood in the doorway for a couple of seconds, just staring inside the of the sitting room. 

“There’s nobody here.” Garry said as he went inside. 

“Let’s wait for them, then.” Yoshiki said and went inside as well. He was about to sit down on a chair when he saw a small key. 

“Eh?” He picked up the key and looked at it. “Could this be the key to the basement?” 

“Huh? Where did you find that?” Garry asked, stopping in the middle of sitting down. He stood up and went to where Yoshiki was. 

“I found it on this chair.” Yoshiki answered. “If I remember right, Yuka was sitting here this morning...” 

They looked at each other as if sharing the same thought. “Does that mean...”Garry started, eyes wide in realization. 

“...Yuka is a traitor?!” Yoshiki shouted. 

“It seems unlikely but never mind that! Let’s head towards the basement and save the victims!” Garry shouted. Yoshiki nodded and they ran out of the room to find the locked door. Once they did, they inserted the key and turned it. They heard a click and the door slowly opened with a creak. The steps of the stairs faded into darkness as it went deeper and deeper underground. A voice echoed, coming from the darkness. 

“Wooooooh...” A shiver crawled up their spines. “S-scary!”Yoshiki commented. 

“I-I think we should get some flashlights first.” Garry said, slowly backing away from the door. 

“Y-yeah! That sounds like a great idea!”Yoshiki seconded the motion and was slowly backing away as well. They stopped when they heard someone giggling behind them. All of a sudden, they were pushed through the door and fell down the stairs. 

“AAAAAAAAHHH!” 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

Suga silently walked down the dark corridors. Was this still part of the mansion? If so, why did they need to add this creepy place?! They had already gone through a horrific experience! There’s no need to put them through another one! He sighed as he questioned the sanity of the person who made these challenges. 

“Is anybody out there? Hello?” he heard a voice coming from behind a door. It sounded like a girl. He went up on the door and knocked on it, indicating that there was someone there. There was brief pause. 

“Who’s there? Can you help me? My hands are tied up and I couldn’t open the door.” He heard the girl say. Instead of answering who he was, he just simply opened the door. It wasn’t locked, just like his. It was fairly dark but he could make out a girl with blue hair tied into two pigtails with the light coming from the hallway. She was sitting in the middle of the room, hands tied behind her back just like she said. 

“Who are you?” she asked. 

“Suga...”he muttered. He went inside and untied the rope binding her wrists together. After the rope was gone, the girl rubbed her wrists. 

“Suga...Suga...” the girl mused, thinking where she had heard the name before. “Ah! The one Shiori came with! The silent guy wearing black!” she exclaimed, finally remembering. 

Suga simply nodded as a response. “...Name?” he asked. 

“Ayumi Shinozaki.” The girl introduced herself. “I’m guessing you’re one of the victims like me?” 

Suga nodded again. He looked towards the door and motioned her to follow. She nodded and went out of the room with him. 

“I really think these challenges are absurd...”Ayumi muttered as they walked. 

“I agree.” Suga replied. Since talking a bit yesterday [and practicing when he was alone in his room last night], he doesn’t sound that bad anymore, though he still prefers to use the notepad. Which wasn’t his possession again today. 

Ayumi smiled. “Well, I’m glad I’m not the only one who thinks the same.” She said. Suga smiled a little as well. Maybe coming to this mansion wasn’t such a bad idea, after all. They reached a fork in the path, one heading straight and the other turned right. 

“Let’s split up here and try to find the other victims. After that, let’s meet up outside of here. Agreed?” Ayumi suggested. Suga nodded and with that, the conversation ended and they went on their separate ways. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

“I’m sure they’re very hungry...”Shiori muttered as she walked around the corridors of the 2nd basement floor. She was carrying a small basket filled with loaves of bread. Even if her role was a villain, they shouldn’t really starve the victims. She also thought that it was unnecessary to tie the victims up and Ib agreed but the others got into their roles too much. 

‘Suga-kun must be hungry as well. None of the victims have eaten breakfast, after all. I’ll say sorry to him after this. And to Garry-kun, too, for lying about not knowing where Suga-kun and Ib-chan are...Also, I should tell Yuka that I already gave her brother his loaf of bread so that she wouldn’t worry too much...’ She thought to herself. She turned at a corner, where Suga should be held captive when she noticed the door wide open. 

Shiori immediately ran to the room and looked inside. All she could see was a couple of glass shards, a broken wine bottle and the rope used to tie the victim’s hands. But there was no sign of Suga. 

“Oh no...I’ve got to tell the others!” 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

Garry and Yoshiki stood up after falling down the stairs, their bodies feeling sore. “Who the hell pushed us?!” Yoshiki complained, stretching his back. 

Garry was about to say something when they heard that scary voice again, echoing in the corrider. Another shiver ran up their spines. Then, they both saw two shadow-like figures heading towards them. “L E A V E...” the voice sounded familiar. They were panicking though, so they couldn’t think straight. Yoshiki and Garry shouted at the top of their lungs. 

“UWAAAHH!” “GYYAAAAAHH!” 

In their panic, they started to run away. Yoshiki ran back up the stairs and Garry ran down the corridor. The shadow stepped into the light of a lantern to reveal that it was Yonaka. She sweatdropped. ‘Geez...they were too easy to scare.’ Garry ran and ran until he ran out of breath. He paused for a moment to catch his breath. He looked behind him and saw nobody following him. He sighed, remembering how those paintings in the gallery chased him and Ib. Thankfully, his life didn’t depend on a rose this time around. Soon, he saw a group of girls standing in the middle of the hallway. He saw Ib wearing a magical girl outfit among them. He smiled. 

“Ib! I’m so glad I found you!” Garry exclaimed and was about to run towards her when the girls formed a barricade, blocking the path. Ib stood in the middle of the group, looking at Garry. 

“Huh?” 

“We can’t let you pass!”Seiko shouted, pointing towards Garry. It only made him more confused. 

“Why not?” Garry asked. They couldn’t possibly be... 

“Because we are the Kawaii Shoujo! We are the ones who will stop anybody from getting to the victims!” Yuka shouted and the whole group posed. A moment of silence passed by. You would literally be able to hear a pin drop in the silence. 

“Is Garry not impressed?”Ib asked. After all the practice they did to perfect the pose... 

“A-ah, no! I’m impressed! Very impressed! The name ‘Kawaii Shoujo’ fits you all perfectly!” Garry stuttered. To be honest, he was just surprised that the villains were mostly girls. Another moment of silence. 

“...After all our hard work of practicing...”Aya muttered. They all looked dejected. Yuka even looked like she was going to cry. Garry panicked. What was he supposed to do?! The girls then started to look at him with puppy dog eyes. 

“Ok, ok! I’ll go back and pretend I didn’t see this place.” Garry said, which made the girls happier. 

Ib smiled at him. “Thank you, Garry!” This made Garry smile. 

“No problem.” He said. He was about to turn around and go back when he heard a scream from where the stairs were supposed to be. He was overcomed with fear again and started running towards the other direction, passing through the group of girls. They watched him as he ran screaming. 

“...Is he really that much of a scaredy-cat, Ib?” Seiko asked. Ib silently nodded. 

“I’ll follow him and lead him back out.” Ib said and walked to where Garry ran to. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

Suga silently wandered along the corridors since he was all alone again. Soon, he was able to find the stairs heading up. So he was underground, after all. There was another hallway heading to the right, possibly where Ayumi went. He stopped for a moment, thinking if he should explore the place before heading up when he heard someone screaming. It was getting louder and louder and sounded like it was coming from upstairs. He looked up, only to see a familiar face tripping and falling towards him... 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

Shiori ran, her footsteps echoing in the empty hallway. She found another open door where Ayumi was supposed to be. Suga must have helped her get out. She didn’t really expect Suga to try and escape but unlike the other victims, he wasn’t properly ‘oriented’ about the whole thing. 

She was about to turn around a corner to where the stairs when she noticed two people. She stopped in her tracks and hid behind the wall. She slowly peeked out from her hiding place and was surprised by what she saw. Was Ib telling the truth yesterday about what she saw in the garden? 

She blushed as she saw Garry on top of Suga in a very suggestive position. Garry must have found the key Yuka dropped and entered the basement. She ran away, her face beet red. ‘Was this the thing Suga meant in his note during that night? But if what Ib said was true and what I saw was real, could one of them be...?!’ 

Meanwhile, Ib saw Garry on top of someone when she arrived at the stairs. She was hiding behind a wall, just like Shiori was. She walked away, covering her eyes. ‘I’m sure Garry wouldn’t want me to see that...but if Garry really is that way...then I’ll do my best to win him back!’ she thought to herself. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

Suga felt a weight on top him disappear. He slowly opened his eyes, his head aching a bit after hitting the floor hard. Whoever this person was should really be careful when running. He sat up and held his forehead in his hand. 

“A-are you alright, Suga?! I’m sorry!” He looked beside him to see Garry, looking really sorry. 

“..Head hurts.” He muttered as an answer. 

“I’m really really sorry!” Garry exclaimed. 

“...It’s alright.” Suga replied and stood up. Garry stood up as well, scratching the back of his head. He then noticed the handkerchief on Suga’s hand. 

“You’re hurt?” he asked. 

Suga nodded. “When I escaped. It’s not much. Just need to clean it.” He muttered. Garry took his hand and examined it. He was surprised by the sudden action as Garry slowly remove the handkerchief. Suga noticed how gentle and careful Garry was holding his hand. He pushed back those thoughts forming inside his head. ‘We’re both straight men, this is just a friendly gesture.’ He thought to himself. 

“It might need more than cleaning...”Garry said. “I have a first aid kit in my bag back in the room. Let’s treat it there.”And with that, they left the basement. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

After one of the ‘heroes’ got through, the rest of the Kawaii shoujo became sad and were unwilling to play along anymore and so all of the victims were saved...well, all the victims really escaped and met the other heroes on the first basement floor. And the game ended with that. 

Garry and Suga went to their room to treat the wounds. Garry also discovered a couple of scratches on Suga’s back as well when he patted Suga’s back and he winced. He made Suga sit down on the bed as he looked for his first aid kit. Suga found his katana and notepad back here in their room. 

“Hey, Suga. What was the prize for saving the victims, anyway?” Garry asked as he took out the kit from his bag. 

“...We have to do a favor to one of the heroes.” Suga said. 

“Favor? Like a request?” Garry said as he poured ointment on his hand and raised Suga’s shirt to examine his back further. 

Suga nodded. He winced a little but felt relief a few seconds later as Garry spreaded the ointment on his back. 

“Okay, I have one!” Garry exclaimed, smiling, though Suga couldn’t see it. “Can we be friends?” 

Suga looked back at Garry and raised an eyebrow. Things like that don’t need to be requested. 

“What? I don’t really have anything on my mind right now.” Garry said and chuckled. Suga rolled his eyes, a small smile on his lips. 

“Of course. “


	4. Day Three at the Mansion - Sickness and Rain

For once, Garry had woken up earlier than Suga. He saw Suga sleeping face down on the bed. He must have been tired after that challenge yesterday. He wasn’t even able to eat properly last night, probably for missing both breakfast and lunch. Garry decided to bring Suga something from breakfast. Probably pancakes and a glass of milk. 

Strangely, he didn’t find any envelopes containing the challenge for today. To be honest, the whole place was eeriely quiet. He looked at a clock in the hallway. It was already 7:30am. Maybe they were in the dining hall. He was heading there anyway. 

When he reached the dining hall though, there were no souls in sight. There were still some food on the table but nobody there to eat it.“Hello?” he called out. His voice simply echoed in the room. Even though this confused him, he took a tray and placed two knives, two forks, two plates of pancakes and two glasses of milk on it. He carried it carefully as he had to climb up a couple of floors to get to their room. 

“Oh, hey Garry!” Finally! Another person! It was Satoshi who greeted him. “What’s that for?” 

“Good morning! It’s for Suga and I. He seemed a bit weak so I thought of bringing him breakfast.” Garry replied. “Have you received the challenge for today? And have you seen anybody else?” 

“About that, there was an announcement this morning. The challenge for today would be held at the basement. I think everybody else are there already. I just came back here to get a flashlight since it’s a bit dark down there.” Satoshi answered. 

“Ah, I see. Thank you. We’ll head down there after eating breakfast.” Garry said and climbed up a couple of more stairs. 

“...They got awfully close in a few days...”Satoshi muttered and shrugged. He went down the stairs, thinking what room is he going to get. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

Suga slowly opened his eyes. His body felt a bit heavier than usual. Skipping breakfast and lunch might have made him weaker than he thought. Add in the fact that he just did his own escape and got a few scratches, it wouldn’t be surprising if his body ached. 

He slowly got out of bed, feeling like he just rose up from the dead. His motions were all sluggish. He tried to fix his bed as properly as he could but he couldn’t focus. Maybe he’ll feel better once he ate breakfast. He glanced at the clock.It was almost eight o’clock. Garry must have eaten breakfast already. 

Wondering what the challenge is today and if he could be exempted, he opened the door. He felt like the whole corridor was moving so he leaned against the wall for support as he walked. He felt like his feet were blocks of cement as he dragged it along the floor. It was taking him awfully long just to reach the staircase. Halfway there though, he saw Garry coming up, holding a tray of food. He seemed to have noticed him. 

“Suga? What are you doing out of bed?” Garry asked him. 

“Going down for breakfast.” Suga answered back. He was starting to get used to talking. 

“Don’t worry about that. I’ve brought it for you. You should have stayed in bed and rested. You look awful.” Garry said, a concerned look on his face. “Come on, let’s go back to the room and have breakfast. After that, you should get some more rest. I’m sure you could be exempted in today’s challenge.” 

Suga knew well that acting stubborn wouldn’t help him. He didn’t even have the energy to walk around and do another of those crazy challenges. Clean-up duty doesn’t sound bad anyway. He nodded and they both walked to their room, Garry trying to match his speed. 

Once they got there, Suga sat down on his bed. He was sweating a bit, making the white t-shirt he wore last night stick to his skin. His face was a bit flushed and he was feeling a bit hot. Garry put down the tray on the dresser and handed Suga his breakfast with a smile. 

They both ate their breakfast in silence. Suga’s tastebuds weren’t really working as the taste of the food seemed bland but he didn’t complain. As long as he gets to eat something without throwing up, it’s good. Thinking that it was too quiet, Garry decided to speak. “Hey, you know what? Running through the corridors of the basement reminded me of what Ib and I went through.” 

Suga looked at him curiously. He never did hear the others tell what horrific experience they went through. He thought it was rude to ask them directly since none of them were really close. He kept on eating while listening to Garry. 

“You see, Ib and I met in this art gallery. Except this wasn’t any ordinary gallery. There were paintings and statues that moved and tried to steal our roses. In that place, the rose is kind of like your life. If it runs out of petals, you’re dead. I almost died there if it weren’t for Ib.” Garry told him, a distant look in his eyes and a sad smile on his lips. 

“There were creepy dolls as well. And a girl with blond hair named Mary wanted to kill us. Only she wasn’t really human but a painting. We...killed her by burning her painting.” He looked at the side when he said the last part. Suga thought that Garry must have been feeling reluctant for doing that. He could sympathize, remembering how he killed several of the ghost children with his katana. 

“Ha, sorry. I think I got a bit carried away.” Garry said. The sky outside had become dark and a light drizzle fell. The raindrops gently tapped against the window of their room. This reminded Suga of those times before they solved the problem with the Kotori Obake. 

“It’s alright.” Suga said. “I know how killing someone feels. Even if they aren’t human...” He put away his plate and finished his glass of milk. 

“Oh?” Garry asked, curious. “If it’s alright to ask, what happened?” 

“There was a myth where I lived. It was the Kotori Obake. She abducts children who go into the forest and make a promise with her.” Suga started. “I ran away to the forest one day, looking for my mother.” 

“Shiori followed after me. I was supposed to be the one who would make a promise with the Kotori Obake but Shiori came and protected me, making a promise before I could. Because of the sudden exchange, the Kotori Obake took my voice as compensation.” 

“After that, Shiori’s parents used the power of the night glowstone to erase her memories and make her forget the promise so that the Kotori Obake wouldn’t get her. I stayed and worked hard to be able to make accessories out of the glowstone.” Suga then picked up his katana and unsheated it. 

“I made this out of the same thing. The night glowstone repels the ghost children in the forest, as well as the Kotori Obake. It has lost its power already but the memory remains. Day after day...hearing their cries...killing them again and again.It was horrible. And I couldn’t tell anyone. Not that anyone would believe me in the first place...If Shiori and I weren’t able to stop and appease the Kotori Obake...” 

Garry looked at Suga as he closed his eyes. Suga didn’t really want to bring back these memories. The wails of the children haunted him for years. Even if the whole event was over, sometimes he would dream about it again. Over and over. Tears threatened to fall from his eyes. He really was a crybaby. He was starting to feel dizzy. Perhaps he should rest already. 

“It’s alright. I understand. It must have been really hard to go through all of that.” Garry said. It sounded much worse than his. He only spent a day in that gallery while this man before him had lived in his experience for years. Seeing that they were both done with their breakfast, he placed the dirty plates and empty glasses on the tray again. 

“Okay. You should get some rest. I’ll be back in a minute.” Garry said, smiling and left the room. 

Suga sighed as he lied down. He was starting to get a headache and he felt that the room was starting to spin. He closed his eyes and listened to the rain, pouring down outside the window. He swore he could still hear the cries of those children. He didn’t want to but soon, he was brought to sleep by the sound of drizzling rain. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

Garry soon came back, bringing a glass of water and a few pills for headaches with him. Good thing it was easy to find it in the shower rooms. He was about to announce his arrival when he saw Suga sleeping. He went in quietly, so that he wouldn’t disturb him. 

After placing the glass and the pills on top of the dresser, he looked at Suga once more. He was sweating a bit and he looked like he was uncomfortable. Thinking that it wouldn’t be good for Suga to sleep with a wet and dirty t-shirt on, he opened the bottom drawer and looked for a suitable change of clothes. He found a t-shirt that seemed alright and took it out, as well as a dry towel. He gently nudged Suga but it didn’t seem to wake him up. 

‘I guess I have to do it myself then...but...’Garry thought and a faint blush appeared on his face. ‘Isn’t this kind of invading his privacy?’ 

“Suga! Suugaa!” he whispered while nudging Suga’s side again. If he doesn’t manage to wake him up, then he’ll have to change his clothes for him. He thought he would wake up when he stirred but he remained asleep. 

Garry looked unsure of what he was going to do but it was for the good of things. He put his hand underneath Suga’s back and gently pushed him up to a sitting position. Even when he was being moved, Suga remained asleep. 

Once he was in sitting position, Garry carefully lifted up Suga’s shirt. It was already drenched in sweat. Changing his clothes definitely seemed like the best idea. Once he was able to remove it, he took the dry towel and started to wipe Suga’s body as gentle as he could. The scratches on his back seemed to have healed, thanks to the ointment, but it doesn’t hurt to be careful. 

While doing so, he seemed to have noticed how pale Suga’s skin was. Suga’s body was lean as well. He wasn’t bad-looking. In fact, he seemed like a man most females would like, especially those who are after ‘mysterious’ type ones. 

A faint blush reappeared on Garry’s face as he thought about those things. He was a man. He was sure of that. But why is he getting embarrased with all of this? Maybe he was thinking of the special condition. Yes, perhaps that was the reason. 

After that, he put the new shirt on Suga. When he was done, he gently lowered him back to the bed and pulled up the blanket on top of him. He wiped Suga’s face with the towel as well. He sighed after he was done and placed his hand on Suga’s forehead to check his temperature. He was a bit warm but not to the point that it was worrying. Still, he went out of the room for a moment again. 

This time, he came back with a bowl of water and a towel. He placed the towel in the water and squeezed out the excess. After folding it into a small rectangle, he placed it on Suga’s forehead. He then remembered about the wound on his hand. ‘Might as well take care of that.’ He thought. 

He took out the first aid kit from his bag again. To be honest, he brought it along for Ib, just in case she would get hurt or sick. He never imagined that he would be using it on someone else. He took out the ointment and a roll of bandage. He knelt on one knee and took Suga’s injured hand. After removing the bandage and applying the ointment on Suga’s right hand, he replaced the old bandage with a new one. Standing up, he admired his work. 

The look on Suga’s face looked more peaceful. Garry smiled. ‘I guess I’ll stay here for the mean time, just in case something happens.’ Remembering the pills and the glass of water he brought in a while ago, he took a sheet of Suga’s notepad and wrote something down. He placed the corner of the paper underneath the glass so it wouldn’t fly away. 

He sat down on the floor besides Suga’s bed while leaning against the wall. He closed his eyes momentarily, listening to the rain falling outside the house. It was so calming that he didn’t notice himself drifting off to sleep. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

It was already around two in the afternoon when Suga woke up. The rain had stopped and the sun was shining brightly. He still felt a little dizzy but it was bearable unlike a few hours ago. Maybe some food and rest was all he really need. He felt someone was holding his right hand. He sat up and looked to the side and saw Garry, sleeping right next to his bed. 

He blushed a little, seeing how his hand was intertwined with Garry’s. Maybe he unconsciously grabbed it when he was asleep. Still, it would have been embarassing if someone saw them like that. He carefully removed his hand from Garry’s grip and sat up. A towel fell from his forehead. 

This surprised him a little bit. Was Garry taking care of him while he was asleep? Now that he noticed it, he was wearing a new shirt and the bandage on his right hand was changed. He even saw a glass of water and some pills on the dresser, along with a letter. 

He took the note and read it. ‘Suga, if you wake up, take one of the pills and drink the glass of water. It will help with your headache. Get well soon, Garry.’ 

He glanced at the sleeping man’s face. There was a small smile. Suga smiled a little as well as he took his pen and wrote something as a reply. After that, he got up and took the blanket from Garry’s bed. He gently put it on top of him so that he wouldn’t wake up. He then followed the instructions of the note and lied back down on bed. He was still feeling a bit unwell so he probably need more rest. He fell back to sleep with a single thought in his head. 

It was nice to have a new friend.


	5. Day Four at the Mansion - Bound Together

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter contains Rape/Non-con.

Suga was feeling a lot better when he woke up this morning. He stood up and stretched a little. He was glad that he got better already. He was fixing his bed when he heard some shuffling behind him. He looked behind and saw Garry sitting up, stretching his arms while yawning. 

“Good morning.” Suga greeted. 

“Ah, good morning, Suga. Are you feeling well?” Garry greeted back. 

Suga nodded. “Thank you...for taking care of me yesterday.” He said. 

“No problem. It’s the least the I could do.” Garry replied. They both got ready and planned to go to breakfast together. 

“You know, this might be the first time we would be on time for breakfast.” Garry said and chuckled, putting on his coat. Suga thought for a moment. It was true. This might be the first time they would be eating breakfast on time. Garry opened the door as they were about to head out, only to find a woman blocking the way. 

“Uh, hello? You seem new.” Garry said, looking at the woman in surprise. ‘I thought there were only ten girls?’ he thought to himself. 

“Is this the room of Garry and Suga?” she asked. Suga peered from Garry’s back, seeing as the man was a few inches taller than him. Who in the world would look for them and why? 

“Yes. This is the room...”Garry answered, sounding unsure. The lady had a pokerface and he couldn’t tell what her intentions were. 

“I am Riza and I’m here to give you the punishment for not doing the challenge yesterday.” The lady said in a serious tone. 

“Ah, speaking about that...is there really no exemptions? Suga was sick and I—“ While Garry was in the middle of his sentence, Riza took his left wrist and handcuffed it. Garry looked at her in disbelief, his mouth wide open. 

Suga already thought that Riza was going to target him next and backed away quickly. Riza was fast, though, and caught his right wrist and handcuffed it as well. Satisfied with her work, she stepped back. Garry and Suga both looked at the handcuff now connecting them to each other. It was only twelve inches long so they were pretty close to each other. 

“You two are going to spend the whole day handcuffed to each other. Tomorrow morning, at 6am, would the handcuffs be removed.” Riza said and was about to leave when Garry called out. 

“WAIT A MINUTE! THE WHOLE DAY?! WHAT IF ONE OF US IS GOING TO USE THE BATHROOM?!” he shouted. 

Riza looked back at Garry, a playful smile on her lips. “You’re both men. What’s wrong with that?” With one last chuckle, the lady left the two men alone. 

Garry was left speechless with what just happened. He glanced at the handcuffs then at Suga. He looked pretty irritated and ready to slash someone with that katana of his. Suga covered his face with his left hand, trying to control himself. 

“...This is going to be a long day...”Garry muttered. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

They walked silently side by side and headed towards the dining hall. On the way there, they met Seiko and Naomi, who were holding an envelope in their hands. They stopped walking when they saw Garry and Suga. Naomi couldn’t help but stare at the handcuff linking them to each other. 

“Woah, starting to get kinky, are we? No need to show it in public, though~” Seiko teased and winked. Suga’s face reddened as he looked down and smack his face into his palm. Garry blushed and became flustered. 

“I-it’s not like that! This is punishment for—“ Garry stuttered but was cut off by Seiko’s laughter. 

“I’m just joking, you guys!” Seiko laughed some more. 

“Ah..haha..haha...”Garry gave a weak laugh. He was incredibly uncomfortable. It’s not like they wanted to be handcuffed together. 

“Though, I’m sure no one would mind if you two swing that way.” Seiko said and smiled. 

“Seiko!” Naomi shouted, blushing a little bit. She hoped that Seiko would get the hint and stop. 

Suga had enough of this. He didn’t wake up this morning just to get ridiculed at. “Let’s go.” His voice was deep and stern. He pulled against the chain linking them together. Before they could leave, Naomi shouted after them. Suga ignored it though and dragged Garry along with him. 

“Gah! Wait! Suga! That hurts!” Garry shouted but his complaints were ignored. Seeing that talking wouldn’t help, he yanked back his end of the chain, pulling Suga towards him. This took Suga by surprise and made him stop. 

“What?!” Suga shouted, his voice cracking a little as he wasn’t used to shouting. Garry leaned back a little, surprised. This was the first time he heard Suga shout. He was left speechless. There was a heavy silence between the two of them. A few moments passed. 

Suga sighed and ran his hand through his hair. “Sorry.” He muttered. 

“Well, at least you didn’t pull out your sword on me this time around.” Garry joked, trying to lighten up the mood. 

Suga rolled his eyes in response. “It’s a katana, not a sword.” He muttered. 

“Look, this is just going to be for one whole day, until 6am tomorrow. I’m sure we can bear it until then.” Garry said, trying to stay optimistic. Though, he was still thinking of the taking a bath part. The chain seemed to be too short for someone to just wait outside the shower curtain. 

Suga sighed again. “There’s a lot of things we need to that would be hard because of this. If it was a bit longer, it would have been better.” 

“At least it’s twelve inches long...it could have been much shorter.” Garry said and shrugged. “Anyway, we were supposed to head to the dining hall for breakfast, right? Shouldn’t we get going?” 

Suga grumbled. He knew being irritated by this punishment wouldn’t solve it. Well, he could always try using his katana on the chain...but then again, it might just make the punishment more harsher...or the chain a lot more shorter. Neither of those options sounded appealing. 

“I’ll take that as a yes.” Garry said, smiling. No matter how much Suga wanted to go back to their room and lock themselves in so nobody could see them, he had no choice and let himself be dragged along to the dining hall. 

“By the way, whose bed are we going to use tonight?” Garry asked innocently. 

“...Shut up.” 

“Haha, sorry sorry.” 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

When they opened the doors to the dining hall, they saw almost everybody sitting there and eating merrily. They all stopped and looked at who just came in. The first thing they noticed was the chain connecting Suga and Garry together. The two men looked at the side, as if feeling embarrassed with all the attention. The dining hall fell silent. Shiori, who was wearing a mage outfit this time around, was the first one to speak up. 

“A-ah, good morning Suga-kun! Garry-kun!”she greeted. The rest of the people in the dining hall followed with their own greetings of good morning. 

“Good morning!” Garry greeted back with a small wave. Instead of talking, Suga resorted to his notepad once more and simply wrote his reply and showed it to the others. 

Shiori walked up to Suga and pulled him along towards the seat beside her. “Come on, Suga-kun! Let’s eat breakfast together.” And with that, the others went back to their usual chatter. 

“Oh, Ib isn’t here?” Garry asked, sitting besides Suga. It’s not like he has a choice. 

“Ah, she’s just changing into her costume for today.” Shiori answered. They had just started eating when Ib came into the room. Her eyes immediately fell upon Garry and Suga who were sitting awfully close to each other. 

‘Remember, Ib, be bold just like Suga and declare your love for Garry-kun! Don’t forget what you practiced this morning! This is also part of your challenge!’ she thought to herself, motivating herself not to back out with what she was about to do. 

“Suga-kun!” she shouted, pointing the staff that was part of her costume at him. Everyone was surprised and stopped whatever they were doing. Ib, the most silent among the girls, just shouted the name of Suga, the silent one among the boys (even though he started to get a bit talkative these past few days). Suga was a bit surprised as well. What could Ib want from him? 

“I-I declare rivalry between the two of us over Garry-kun’s love!!” 

“EEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHH?????!!!!” Garry, who was drinking coffee at that moment, sprayed it out of his mouth. 

“WHAT’S GOING ON?!” “This seems to be an interesting development...” “Ib-chan is so brave for declaring her love like that!” “Kya~ It’s like this scene came out of a story!” “This is madness...” “Oh no, this is Sparta.” “...I think she got it from the book we read yesterday...” 

Everyone was talking all at once, creating more chaos and confusion. Suga couldn’t take anymore. He wasn’t going to let himself be pushed around like when he was a kid. He banged his fists on the table and stood up. “ENOUGH!” he shouted at the top of his voice. His voice surprisingly didn’t crack, making it sound more intimidating. Ib flinched a little. 

The dining hall fell silent once more, all eyes fell on Suga. Today was definitely full of surprises. 

“S-suga-kun...”Shiori muttered. This was the first time she has ever heard Suga shout. 

“We do NOT have that kind of relationship. I do NOT like him.” Suga said sternly, glaring at anyone who gets into his field of sight. He looked at Ib especially at the last part. 

Garry felt sad upon hearing the last part. He understood what Suga meant but what he didn’t understand was what he was feeling. Sure, they were roommates and they were friends. But, that was it. Like Suga said the first time before, they were both men. They were supposed to be acting close just to trick everyone because of a special condition. 

He told Suga before that he would handle that part. But it seems the trick was so good, he was starting to believe it. 

“But...you and Garry...I saw you two--”Ib muttered but was cut off in the middle of her sentence by Suga. 

“I’ll prove it.” Garry looked at him as if he was crazy. What was he planning? 

“T-there’s no need for that!” Satoshi shouted, starting the get uncomfortable with the tension. “Seriously, let’s all just get back to eating and...” 

“Satoshi. Let him speak.” Hiroshi said, a smirk on his face. Usually, he doesn’t pay attention to arguments but this seems to be more interesting than he first thought. “Would you care to enlighten us on how you intend to prove that to us?” 

Suga was silent. He honestly didn’t have any ideas to prove it to them. He looked like he was in deep thought when Hiroshi spoke up again. 

“If you don’t have one, I’ll propose one for you.” he said, pushing his glasses further up his nose. “It’s very simple.” 

“What is it?” Suga asked with a serious tone. 

“Ah, S-suga-kun...you don’t have to...”Shiori muttered. To be honest, she didn’t really mind if one of them was gay and if they were getting close. As long as Suga was happy... 

Hiroshi smirked again. “Take a bath together. Seeing how you two are chained up, you don’t have a choice anyway. If there’s nothing going on between you two, there should be no problem in seeing each other naked. Come find me when you’re done. I’ll be waiting at the hallway of the shower rooms.” 

“I accept.” Suga immediately answered, seeing that Hiroshi had a point in his challenge. A lot of the people (mostly girls) gasped. 

Garry became flustered. Did Suga just accepted the challenge? “W-wait a minute! Don’t I have any say in this?” 

“I don’t think so, Garry...” Yonaka told him and patted him at the back . “I wish you luck.” 

“S-suga, you don’t have to do it! I’m sure no one believes that we’re in a relationship!...Right?” Garry said and glanced around the room. All of them would look away and either scratch the back of their heads or twiddled their thumbs. 

“W-wait...you ALL thought we were...Ah, Shiori, you don’t believe that, right?” he asked, looking at her desperately. She only avoided his gaze. Well, guess he didn’t have to worry about tricking them. 

“We’re going.” Suga said and pulled at the chain. 

“Hold on.” Morishige called out. “I’m just going to tell you about the challenge for today. Be here at 6pm. I’m sure you guys don’t want to be punished for not attending a challenge again.” 

“Noted.” Suga simply answered and left the dining hall, dragging a protesting Garry with him. Hiroshi followed shortly, a serious look on his face. When the door shut, the people started to talk again. 

“...He was surprisingly vocal today...”Ayumi commented. 

“He’s scary when he’s angry,as well...”Allen added. 

“Agreed.” Morishige voiced and everybody nodded. 

‘Suga-kun...’Shiori thought, getting concerned for her childhood friend. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

It was only now that Suga had reconsidered his actions from a while ago. He was in a shower room with Garry, who looked pretty uncomfortable. The clothes they’re going to wear after were neatly folded on a shelf near the door. The door was locked and everything seemed to be in the right position. Towels, soap, shampoo... 

“Are you sure about this, Suga?” Garry asked. “I mean, we could take turns in the shower and...” 

Suga shook his head. “The chain is too short. We don’t have any other choice.” 

Garry frowned. “I guess we really don’t.” He muttered. “I’m going to get undressed, alright?” 

Suga nodded. Garry had already taken his coat a while ago and hung it on the coat hanger behind the door. He started to take off his undershirt, only to accidentally pull against the chain. 

“Ah, sorry sorry.” Garry apologized, looking behind him. “I’m not sure how we’re going to make this work...I mean, we won’t be able to remove our tops properly because of this chain...” 

Suga thought about it. It was true. They wouldn’t really be able to remove their tops with the chain. “Then, we’ll have to take a bath with those on.” Garry mentally let out a sigh. That means they might be able to take a bath with clothes on. 

Suddenly though, Garry felt a tug at the chain. He looked back, only to see Suga removing his pants. 

“Wait! What are you doing?” 

“We can’t take a bath with our pants on. The chain doesn’t really pose any problems down there...”Suga muttered. He was really starting to regret his outburst from a while ago. 

“Ah, I see...”Garry muttered back. After Suga was done, he removed his as well. He closed his eyes momentarily. Even if their tops weren’t off, their pants were and that’s more disturbing. They stood still there for a moment. 

“Should we shower now?” Suga asked, still not turning around. 

“AH YES!” Garry accidentally shouted, being nervous. His face was red with embarrassment. This was not something he was expecting when he accepted the invitation. Suga walked towards the shower and Garry followed, walking backwards to avoid seeing Suga. 

The space was a bit small so they had to stand closer to each other. Suga turned the faucet on and water came out of the shower. Once the water was pouring down their bodies, Suga had started to feel calmer. It was cool and refreshing but Garry wasn’t feeling any more relaxed. He was still standing behind Suga, not daring to face him. 

‘Stay calm. Everything is going to be fine.’ Garry told himself but he didn’t believed it. Thinking he should probably do something, he grabbed the shampoo bottle and started to read the labels. 

Suga took the soap from the side and started to lather it on his hands. He was about to lather his arms next when he pulled against the chains. “Ah, sorry.” Suga apologized in a monotonous voice. Garry coudln’t believe it, though. How the hell could Suga be so calm right now?! 

“It’s alright. I’ll adjust a little.” He replied and went closer to Suga. Their backs were practically touching already. He blushed at the contact. He was thankful nobody could see his face right now. 

“There was no need but thank you.” Suga replied, a slight pink tinged his face. He continued to lather his body with soap. 

“Let me use the soap after you’re done, okay?” Garry said. 

“Alright.” Suga answered. He realized one thing at the moment. He wouldn’t be able to lather his back properly without accidentally pulling Garry. 

“Could you help me? I can’t seem to reach my back properly with the chain in the way.” Garry was surprised at the sudden request. 

“O-Of course!” he replied. He turned around to face Suga’s back, only to realize the problem with the chain again. Stupid chain getting in the way. 

“Ah, seems like the chain’s in the way.” He told Suga. What he didn’t expect was for Suga to face him. The surprise was evident on his face. 

“You can reach out much better when we face each other. Like this.” Suga then proceeded to hug Garry. Their bodies were so close that he could practically feel their skins touching through the fabric. 

Suga started to lather the soap on Garry’s back using the hand which wasn’t chained. He slipped his hand under Garry’s wet undershirt. His touch was gentle and made shivers climb up and down Garry’s spine. This alarmed him as he was starting to feel an uncomfortable sensation at a place he didn’t want. 

“Ah, I get it! I get it!”he said. He pushed Suga away, looking down. Thankfully, the problem hasn’t risen yet.“Just...give me the soap.” He extended his arm towards Suga, still not looking at his face. 

Suga was quiet as he gave the soap to Garry. He seemed to be thinking of something as he handed it over. 

Garry took the soap and stepped closer to Suga to follow his example. Using his right hand, he started to lather the soap on Suga’s back. His face heated up and turned red. He scrubbed his back, trying to be as gentle as he could. 

Suga tried to maintain a pokerface through the whole thing. They were too close for comfort, feeling something rubbing against his leg. He tried to place his focus on the water running on his back but he couldn’t help but squirm a little. 

“It’s done.” He said and stepped away from Suga and immediately turned around, afraid that his face might still be red. He wanted to ignore the thing between his legs that was starting to become a bit hard. “Hurry up with the soap.” ‘So that we could get this over with.’ 

“Okay.” he replied. He hastened his movements and after he was done, handed the soap back to Garry. They were silent during the rest of the shower,standing back to back once again and occasionally saying ‘sorry’ whenever they accidentally pulled at the chain. 

Once they were done, Suga closed the faucet and they stepped out of the shower. Garry handed him his towel and they started to dry themselves up. They both squeezed the excess water from what they were wearing and changed into their new pants. 

“I’m pretty sure we’ll dry out sooner or later.” Garry muttered. Even after squeezing his undershirt, he was still wet and the shirt clung to his skin. 

“...None of this happened, okay?” Suga said, staring at Garry with cold eyes. 

“...Agreed.” 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

Just like he said, Hiroshi was waiting at the hallway for the two of them. He was leaning against the wall, eyes closed. Suga stood a couple of feet away from him with Garry standing right next to him as far as he could. Hiroshi seemed to have noticed their presence and adjusted his glasses before looking at the two. 

A short period of silence passed. Hiroshi looked at them up and down. “Why are your shirts wet?” he asked. 

“The chain posed a problem.” Suga answered back, only giving a short reply. Hiroshi looked at the chain and nodded. 

“Fair enough.” He replied. He took a step forward and examined them closer. Garry readied himself to take a step back if Hiroshi ever decided to take another step closer. 

Suga noticed Hiroshi looking downwards longer than when he is looking at their face. He narrowed his eyes, wary of his intentions. He thought he saw him smirk for a second but before he could confirm that it wasn’t his imagination, it disappeared. 

Garry was panicking inwardly. ‘Crap, is there a buldge? Don’t tell me there is...Act natural! It will go away!’ he thought to himself, not liking this one bit. 

“You passed.” Hiroshi finally announced. “I apologize for having to put you through that as well. It was part of my challenge for today.” He added. 

“...Your challenge for today?” Garry asked, dumbfounded. SO THIS WAS ALL BECAUSE OF A STUPID CHALLENGE FOR TODAY?! Then again, it’s always because of the challenge for today. 

Hiroshi nodded. “I had to challenge someone. That was it. Having the challenge accepted was unnecessary. I apologize for taking advantage of you.” he said and bowed. It took all of Suga’s energy not to take his katana out and chase this man out of this mansion. Instead, he took his notepad and pen and started to write. He showed it to Hiroshi. 

_‘It’s over. What has been done is done.’_ It simply said. 

“Ah, so you’re not going to talk...?” Hiroshi asked. Suga remained silent and stared at him with emotionless eyes. 

“I see. I shall leave now then. Good luck on your challenge later.” He said before leaving the other two behind. 

“Man...we went through all of that because of a challenge.” Garry said, irritated. 

Suga suddenly gave him a sheet of paper. _‘My decision. My fault.’_

“It’s alright. I understand that they got on your nerves a while ago and you were acting on impulse...”He replied, a forced smile on his face. Another paper was given to him. 

_‘Are you mad?’_

“Mad?” Garry thought about it. Was he? He didn’t think so. Well, he was embarrassed and all but not mad. He shook his head. “I’m not mad. I’m more embarrassed if anything.” He gave a small chuckle and scratched the back of his head. Suga nodded. He didn’t believe that Garry wasn’t mad but let it slide. Only half of the day has passed and he was already tired. 

Today was clearly not his day. ‘We have one last thing to do today. The daily challenge at 6pm.’ He showed Garry another paper. 

“I just hope it isn’t bad. I’ve had enough for today.” 

Suga nodded in total agreement. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

The two men spent their time in the sitting room since it was near the dining hall. They had an early dinner since it was said that the dining hall was going to be used later for the challenge. Suga was reading a book while Garry was trying to amuse himself by folding a piece of paper over and over again. Soon, the clock struck six. Suga closed his book and placed it at a table nearby. Garry placed the piece of paper on the table as well, seeing that it could still be used by someone else. 

There were already four other persons in the dining hall when they arrived. Seiko, Morishige, Rin, and Yonaka. The long table in the middle was replaced with a circular one. On the table was six glasses of water, arranged in a circle as well. 

“Hehe, nice to see you two.” Seiko said. “Sorry about this morning. Couldn’t help myself from teasing you guys.” 

“It’s alright.” Garry answered back. Suga remained silent, refusing to speak any more words today. 

“Now that we are complete, everyone pick a glass and drink it.” Morishige said. Suga raised an eyebrow. This challenge couldn’t be that simple, could it? He glanced at Garry and saw that he was glancing back as well. Seems like they had the same doubt. 

Even so, they couldn’t risk getting another awkward punishment by not complying. Not after today. Everybody took their place in front of the glass they chose. Suga had no choice but to take the one to the left of Garry. 

“I’m hoping that none of these are poisonous. This challenge IS called Russian Roulette: Drink version.” Rin said, eyeing the glass of water in front of her suspiciously. 

“I doubt that they’ll poison us.” Yonaka replied. 

Seeing that everyone was in position, Morishige spoke up. “On the count of three, we’ll drink at the same time. Three...two...one!” At the signal, everybody drank up the ‘mysterious’ water. They placed all their empty glasses back on the table and looked at each other. 

“Well? Anyone feeling any different?” Rin asked out loud. No one answered, simply waiting for whatever to take effect. 

“Maybe it was just water, after all!” Seiko exclaimed and smiled cheekily. 

“I agree. I’m not feeling anything.” Morishige said. 

“Me either.” Yonaka said. Suga shook his head as well. 

“How about you, Garry?” Seiko asked. 

“...I think I feel dizzy.” Garry said, frowning a little bit. What rotten luck. “Anybody here knows what the different drink was supposed to be?” 

“Well, it says here...”Seiko started and pulled out a letter. “The drink is supposed to be something that ‘makes one’s other side come out’.” 

“I still wondering what it meant by that. I have a vague idea but it’s just an assumption. But I do believe it’s not harmful in anyway.” Morishige mused. 

“So that’s it? We can all go on with our businesses?” Rin said. Morishige nodded. 

“Seems so. Well, see you later guys. I’ll be taking my leave.” He said and headed towards the door. The others, seeing that they don’t really have anything to do here anymore, left as well. 

“Hey Suga.” Garry called out. Suga looked beside him and saw that Garry seemed to be having a hard time. “Mind if we go to our room already? I want to rest a little bit. My head’s starting to hurt.” 

Suga nodded and supported him. After a long walk up the staircase, they finally reached the fifth floor. Garry looked a bit worse and worse with every passing floor. He started to worry about his condition. 

“...How are you feeling?” he asked, even though he told himself that he wasn’t going to talk for the rest of the day. 

Garry only groaned. Suga could feel Garry’s body heating up, which only increased his concern. Seeing how they were chained up, he wouldn’t be able to gather things that would help without dragging Garry around with him. The only thing he could do was let Garry rest on a bed. 

When they arrived in their room, Suga assisted Gary to his bed. He had to lie down beside Garry because of the short chain connecting them. Garry’s breathing was quick and his face was red. 

“S-suga...”Garry muttered his name. 

Before Suga could speak, a pair of lips collided with his. He was taken by surprise and tried to push Garry away, only to have his hands pinned above his head. He struggled against the grip but his actions were futile. 

He felt Garry’s tongue pushing against his lips but he refused to grant him entrance. He couldn’t help but gasp when Garry slipped a hand under his shirt and started to run his fingers across his stomach. 

Garry took this chance and slipped his tongue in. He pressed against Suga and deepened the kiss while moving his hands up towards Suga’s chest. His tongue left no spot untouched as he easily dominated Suga’s mouth. 

Suga couldn’t do anything but close his eyes and struggle against Garry. He started to feel strange which he didn’t like. His body felt too sensitive for his liking and he was starting to feel uncomfortable down there. No, he did not like where this was going. 

Garry separated from Suga, both of them panting heavily. He slowly lifted Suga’s shirt up to reveal his toned body underneath. 

Looking at him with half-closed eyes in attempt to glare at him but only failing miserably, Suga spoke. 

“W-what are you--! Hnng...”Suga was cut off as Garry moved down and licked his nipple. He gritted his teeth and closed his eyes again. He arched his back as shivers continued to run up and down his spine. Garry continued to flick his tongue over his nipple while he rubbed his thumb over the other. Soon though, he stopped and started to move his hand down, tracing a finger from his chest down to his stomach to the button of his pants. 

“S-stop!” Suga shouted, his struggle becoming more frantic. He looked up at Garry who was looking down on him, watching him squirm in his grasp. He could feel a dominant aura coming from Garry, which wasn’t like him at all. 

Garry went close to Suga’s ear, his every breath tickling him. “Don’t worry. I’ll make you feel good.” He whispered with a seductive tone. His smile was different from his usual friendly one. He stared at him with half-closed eyes as he slowly pulled down Suga’s pants and underwear, freeing the buldge that had been waiting to get out. 

“Not bad.” Garry commented as he grabbed Suga’s manhood and gave it a little squeeze. 

Suga inhaled sharply, trying to suppress an ungodly sound from coming out of his mouth. He breathed heavily as Garry started to move his hand. His face was hot and closed his eyes once more, not wanting to see what was happening. 

A moan escaped from Suga’s lips as Garry started to move his hand faster, rubbing the tip a little every time he reaches it. He was close. He could feel the pressure building up at the base. Precum leaked out from his tip, making Garry’s hand a bit slicker. 

“G-Ga...”He wanted to ask him to stop but he can’t even say his name. He became alarmed when the grip on his manhood disappeared and he started to feel pressure at a different place. 

“Relax.” Garry whispered once more. With that, he slowly inserted two of his fingers into Suga's hole. It was relatively easy, seeing that his fingers were already lubricated. Suga clenched his fists and his breathing came out in harsh breaths. He dug his heels on the bed as Garry probed his insides, gently sticking his fingers in and out. 

“I think that’s enough...”he heard Garry mutter. He removed his fingers and started to unzip his pants. He pulled it down along with his underwear, revealing his member, hard and already dripping with precum.He positioned it and slowly slid it inside. 

“Nggh...It’s a bit tight...” Garry said, pushing forward until it was all in. Suga gritted his teeth as a few tears escaped from his eyes. 

He stayed put for a while, letting Suga’s body adjust. Then, he started with slow and long thrusts. But it gradually became faster, harder and shorter. He was starting to lose himself in the process, the force of his thrusts shaking the whole bed. 

“Hah...G-ga...rry!” Suga said in between breaths. He was moaning louder and louder, unable to stop himself. Garry thrusted deeper into him, hitting a spot that made his whole body shiver. Satisfied with the reaction, Garry kept on. 

“Suga...”he muttered, his breathing uneven. He was close to his release. “S-Suga!” 

“G-garry!” he shouted as white sticky fluid came out of the top of his rod. Not soon after, he felt a wave of the same sticky liquid inside of him, filling him up. He panted, trying to catch his breath. It felt like all the energy in his body left him. He just laid there, motionless. 

Garry pulled his thing out, breathing heavily. Some of the semen poured out of Suga’s hole, mixed with a bit of blood. Pulling the blanket up to cover them, he collapsed and fell asleep almost instantly. Suga, on the other hand, stared at the ceiling. 

‘It was not his fault... He was not himself...Even so...’ He kept on trying to think positive but the more he thought about, the more he just remembered that this event will never be simply erased. An event that will be carved into his mind. As he closed his eyes to go to sleep, a single thought remained in his head. 

‘The damage has been done.’


	6. Day five at the Mansion- Give Me a Break

It was raining outside. The tapping of the raindrops on the roof had awakened Suga some time ago but he kept his eyes closed. He wanted to think that all that happened last night was just a dream but the arm draped across his body and the sore feeling he got told him otherwise. A knock on the door forced him to open his eyes. 

“Is anyone awake? I’m here to remove the handcuffs.” A woman’s voice came from behind. There was no doubt that it was Riza. 

Suga stayed silent. He didn’t feel like talking today. He didn’t feel like doing anything, really. He just wanted to find some place to be alone and just lay there quietly. 

“I’m going in.” Riza announced. The doorknob slowly turned and the door opened with a creak. She peeked in and saw Suga staring at the ceiling. There was an odd odor in the room but she decided to ignore it. 

“You were awake the whole time?” Riza asked, coming into the room. She received no answer. She went closer, showing the key in her hand. “I’m going to remove the handcuffs.” She repeated. Still no response. 

“Not going to speak? Heard you were pretty talkative yesterday.” She spoke, trying to make small talk. Suga’s silence was unnerving, making her feel uncomfortable. She inserted the key and turned it, unlocking the handcuff. She moved to the one on Garry’s hand and removed it as well. 

“Well, I’m done. Also, I’m here to announce that today is a free day. The challenge is to relax after the previous challenges. Just so you know.” She said and left quickly, seeing that Suga doesn’t plan to talk to her. 

After a couple of minutes, Suga slowly sat up, removing the part of the blanket that covered him. He stood up and changed into a new set of clothes and left the room as quietly as possible. He walked a bit oddly, feeling sore behind. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

Garry woke up, head aching a bit. “Ugh...What happened? I think I just had the strangest dream...”he muttered as he sat up. He looked around and saw that he was alone. He glanced at the clock. It was already around 8am. No wonder the chain was gone. He removed the blanket covering him and was surprised to see his pants down. There were a couple of stains on his bed and a bit at the bottom part of his clothes. 

The memory of last night suddenly came flooding back. His eyes widened and jumped out of bed, only to trip and fall flat on his face. He quickly recovered though and stood up, pulling his pants up in the process. 

He ran out the room, shouting Suga’s name. He didn’t mean to do it. He wasn’t thinking straight last night. It was whatever the mysterious water was. He wanted to apologize and try to make up for it. Heading down to the first floor, he saw Shiori standing in front of the door to the backyard, a worried expression on her face. 

“Shiori, where’s Suga?” he asked. 

“He’s outside in the rain, killing off the man-eating plants...he refused to talk and come back inside. He hasn’t eaten breakfast yet and I’m getting worried he might get sick again.” Shiori muttered. She looked at Garry and was slightly surprised at his clothes. 

“Hm? What is it?” Garry asked, then suddenly remembered his clothes. He slapped his forehead. “Idiot!” he shouted at himself. He turned to Shiori, a bit red in the face. “I-I can explain!” 

“What exactly happened?” Shiori asked, but was actually afraid of what he might say. 

Garry looked around. “Let me change first. Then, let’s find a place where we could talk alone.” 

Shiori nodded and the two left. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

After changing clothes, Shiori told him of a room at the third floor that was small and just seemed to be the right spot to talk alone. They went into the room and Shiori sat at the sofa at the side. Garry sighed as he looked through the window overseeing the garden. Suga was still outside, just standing in the middle of the garden while surrounded by plenty of wilted plants. 

“...So?” Shiori said, urging Garry to talk. 

Garry let out another sigh. “I’m sorry.” He started. “I did something reaaaally bad to Suga last night. I didn’t know what I was doing! I swear! It was the thing I drank last night! It made me feel different...a whole lot different than usual! And...oh god...” 

He ran his hand through his hair and sighed again. His face was starting to heat up as he recalled what he did. 

“So you...”Shiori said, a blush forming on her face. She averted her eyes, having an idea on what happened last night. Saying it out loud wasn’t needed. 

“I don’t know how to make up for it. For all I know, he probably hates me right now.” Garry said, glancing at the window. The rain didn’t show any signs of stopping. It continued to pour relentlessly. 

“Hey Garry...”Shiori muttered, “...Sorry if this seems rude but...are you...do you like him...?” 

Garry looked at her with downcast eyes. “I don’t know...I mean...we just met for a few days...and he’s my friend. And we’re both men. And I’m sure he doesn’t roll that way.” 

“But what about you?” Shiori suddenly interrupted. “I-I mean...!” 

“It’s alright. I know what you mean. And I’m not sure anymore. I’ve never liked another man before...This is the first time I...”Garry trailed off and just realized what he said. A faint blush appeared on his face as he covered it with his palm. 

“So you DO like him!” Shiori exclaimed, standing up in excitement. 

“I-I didn’t say that!” Garry stuttered, the blush on his face starting to get darker. 

“But it’s written all over your face!” she said and pointed at him. 

“No, it’s not! Also, pointing is rude!” he shouted, trying to steer away the topic. But no, Shiori was having none of that. 

“You’ve got to tell him, Garry-kun! If not, you’ll be too late and you’ll regret it!” Shiori told him. She went behind him and started to push him into the direction of the door. 

“T-TELL HIM?! ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?! THERE’S NO WAY HE’LL BE FINE WITH THAT! PLUS, HE LIKES YOU!” Garry shouted and covered his mouth. He didn’t really know if Shiori knew it already or not but judging how Suga acts, she may have a vague idea already. 

Shiori stopped for a moment. “...What?” 

Garry sighed and turned to face her. “He likes you, alright? How could you not tell?” 

“I never saw him that way...We’re just friends.” Shiori muttered, a sad smile on her face. “I already like someone else from my university. I feel bad for not being able to return his feelings, honestly.” 

“But even so...that doesn’t mean I should tell him.” 

“Garry-kun.” Shiori said his name firmly. She looked at him with in the eyes and said, “There’s only two days left. After that, there’s a possibility that we would all never meet again. And you may never be able to tell him how you feel. Are you going to be satisfied with that?” 

“What if I say yes?” Garry half-joked. This only earned him a hit on the arm. 

“Ow! What was that for?” 

“I’m being serious!” 

“...” Garry sighed for a third time today. “I’d rather not really. It would be a miracle for him to like me back.” 

“Then, call me your miracle worker!” Shiori exclaimed and ran out of the room. 

“W-wait! Shiori! Don’t! Come back here!” Garry shouted as he ran after her. He had a feeling that it won’t end well if Suga ever discovers that he had started liking him. He doesn’t want to destroy the remaining friendship they had, if there was any left after last night. 

They both ran down the stairs. Shiori opened the door to the backyard wide while shouting Suga’s name. She stopped and stared at the scenery before her. A look of surprise came on her face. 

“Shiori! No!” Garry shouted as he finally caught up to her. He panted and tried to catch his breath. He looked at the garden and was surprised as well. Suga Kotarou wasn’t there. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

The rain still poured outside. Suga huddled in the corner of the room he was in. He was drenched in water and started to feel the cold. His body ached less than this morning but he still felt a bit sore. He hugged his knees trying to keep warm. A hand holding a cup of warm milk came to his view. 

He took it and sipped. After that, he looked at the person who led him here. Ib. 

“There’s some bread and muffins in the basket. Some water bottles and another container with milk, too.” She said. He nodded in reply. It was just a while ago when he was standing under the rain. Ib approached him with an umbrella in hand and a basket in the other. She was wearing an oddly similar outfit like his. She also carried a backpack that looked like a rabbit. 

She asked him to follow her and he did. They went through a door at the fence hidden behind some bushes. It led to a forest and frankly, he didn’t really like it. But as long as he was far from the mansion, he didn’t complain. Ib led him to a small shack that looked well-maintained. And that’s how they both got here. 

“What were you doing out in the rain? Won’t it make you sick?” Ib asked innocently as she took a sit beside Suga. She poured milk from a thermos into another cup. 

Suga remained quiet and drank the milk. He placed his empty cup beside him and took a slice of bread from the basket. He took a muffin as well and handed it to Ib. 

Ib silently took the muffin and stared at it. She muttered something under her breath. It was so soft, Suga barely heard it. He looked at Ib and raised an eyebrow. It would have been nice if he had his notepad right now. Seeing that Ib wasn’t going to repeat what she said, he went back to eating. 

They ate in silence. The raindrops falling on the shack’s roof was the only sound they could hear. Once he was finished, he sighed and closed his eyes. He wondered what time it was already. Even so, he didn’t want to go back yet. 

He heard a shuffling sound beside him and saw Ib pulling out a sketchpad and a pencil from her bag. She started to write something and handed both to Suga. He looked at it, a bit curious. 

‘I’m sorry.’ Were the words written. Suga sighed and wrote his reply underneath. 

‘It’s fine.’ 

Ib wrote something back. ‘Do you like Garry?’ She had a fairly serious expression on her face. 

There was a short pause. Suga carefully thought about it and shook his head. ‘I do not think so. No.’ Was his reply. Ib nodded in response. 

‘...Do you think he likes you?’ Ib asked next. This made Suga think. Did Garry like him? That can’t be. He was just like that because of the special condition...right? Plus, he’s just a really friendly guy. He can’t seem to imagine Garry liking him anyway. He replied with a ‘no’ again. 

“What if he does?” Ib muttered instead of writing. Suga glanced at the little girl. She was hugging her knees and looking at somewhere far. There was a hint of sadness in her voice. Does she really love him that much? 

Suga sighed and wrote his reply on the pad. He gently nudged her side and handed her his reply. She seemed to have been brought back to reality and looked at what Suga wrote. 

‘Two days left. Everything will be over.’ He hoped that would cheer the girl up. After this whole thing, they might never see each other again...and maybe it’s better that way. He’ll go back to his peaceful life at the museum. And he’ll try his best to forget about everything that happened here. It would be for the best...but why does he feel sad about it? 

“Two days...” Ib said softly. “...We’ll all go home...” 

Suga nodded. Silence fell upon them once more. None of them spoke a word. They just listened to the rain outside. The food and milk had already gone cold while they were ‘talking’ to each other. A few minutes later, Ib stood up and took the empty thermoses, placing it inside her bag. 

“I’ll be leaving. Please bring the basket to the kitchen when you come back inside.” Ib said and bowed a little. “See you later.” 

“...No need to be too formal...”Suga muttered. “Just don’t tell anybody where I am...okay?” 

Ib was a little surprised, hearing Suga finally speak today. She nodded and said, “I won’t tell. Just come back later. Shiori-chan might get worried.” She grabbed her umbrella and looked at Suga one last time. After that, she left. 

Upon hearing the front door shut close, Suga sighed again. He checked how much bread and muffins were left in the basket. It still seemed plenty and would last for the whole day, as well as the water bottles. He remembered that he hasn’t thanked Ib for the food and shelter. He made a mental note to thank her when he sees her again. And with that, he waited for the rain to stop. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

It was already nighttime. The rain had just stopped moments ago. All the lights of the mansion were off except for one room. Garry stood by the window, looking outside every now and then. It would be a bit hard to see Suga in the dark, especially if he was wearing all black again. He thought he saw something moving but it must have been his eyes playing tricks on him. 

Ib already told him not to worry but he couldn’t help himself. If something happened, it would be his fault. Ib wouldn’t tell him where he was and if he was okay which frustrated him a bit. She only told him that he needed time alone. 

Tired of standing up, he lied down on his bed. His worries from before came back. What if Suga didn’t come back? What if he got into an accident or something? What if Suga hated him? 

Wanting to get rid of the thoughts, he looked at the clock. It was almost 11pm. But still no sign of Suga. He started to feel tired and closed his eyes momentarily. He fell asleep soon, not noticing that someone had opened the door and closed the lights. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

Seeing that the rain had already stopped, Suga decided to go back to the mansion. It was already dark outside and he could barely see the way back. When he got back to the backyard, he looked at the mansion for a moment. 

He was a bit surprised upon seeing that the light in their room was still open and a silhoutte of a person was standing near it. No doubt it was Garry, looking outside for him. He didn’t expect him to wait for him to come back. The silhoutte moved away but the lights didn’t turn off yet. 

He let out a sigh and headed towards their room. His travel was very slow, a bit unsure if he should already come back. But he already made them worry a lot, disappearing for the whole day. He wondered for a moment what Shiori would tell him when he sees her tomorrow morning. A lot of other people would probably asked what happened and such. He didn’t really like the idea of being the center of attention but it’s his fault for doing such a reckless thing. 

He finally got to their room. He stood in front of the door and let out a deep sigh. He slowly opened the door and peeked in. He saw Garry lying down in his bed, asleep. He went in and stared at him for a short while. He looked very tired. 

As he stared at Garry’s sleeping figure, his mind drifted to Ib’s question. ‘Do you like Garry?’ He thought about it again. No. He certainly did not like him. It’s true that Garry is nice and the two of them seemed very close these past few days...but it’s just as friends, right? And maybe he was being really close because of the condition...he did say that he’ll be the one to handle it. He felt sure that both of them didn’t harbor those kind of feelings for each other. 

And even if he had those feelings...there was only two days left. After that, they’ll go on their separate ways and he’ll probably forget about him and find another person. It’s unlikely for him to visit Azakawa village since the village is small and barely noticeable. It’s not like he would also have time to do so. Those feelings would then slowly fade away until they become nothing. 

Suga sighed. Why was he thinking hard about Ib’s questions anyway? He shook his head, trying to forget about what he was thinking. He flipped off the light switch and closed the door behind him. He went to his bed and lied down. He looked at where Garry was before he turned his back to him and pulled up his blankets. Even as he went to sleep though, the questions remained in his mind. 

Did he like him? Does he like him back? If he does, what would he do? 

It confused him...because the more the questions were repeated in his head, the more unsure he became of his answer.


	7. Day six at the Mansion- Campfire

The next morning, Garry woke up and slowly sat up. He wasn’t expecting that he would fall asleep when he lied down. He looked at the time and saw that it was still fairly early and if he went down right now, he would be just in time for breakfast. He was just about to get out of bed when he noticed something—no, someone in the room he didn’t expect. 

There lying in the bed across of his was Suga, sleeping soundly. His eyes widened in disbelief. The sleeping man stirred and woke up shortly. Yawning, he stretched his arms and sat up. He looked at him, raising an eyebrow. 

Garry opened his mouth to say something but no words came out of his mouth. He just sat there, staring at Suga with a gaping mouth. He was unsure if he was still dreaming or not. 

“...Is it that surprising to find me sleeping in my bed?” Suga asked. 

“Tha-Ho-Wh-When did you get back? Wait, forget about that! Where were you?!” Garry stood up, shouting and threw his hands up in the air. 

“It doesn’t matter.” Suga answered back. He stood up from his bed and started to walk towards the door. He was about to open the door when Garry grabbed his hand. 

“Wait.” Garry muttered. “I just want to say sorry...for what I did.” 

“...It’s alright.” Suga muttered back and pulled back his hand. “You were not in the right mind that time.” 

“No, it’s not alright.” Garry said with a stern voice. “I mean...what I did...it’s not that easy to...” 

“Forget it.” Suga interrupted and sighed. “It’s done and there’s nothing else to do but accept the fact that it happened.” 

“But...”Garry looked down, not knowing what to say. He knew that Suga was clearly affected but just won’t say it. If only he could find the right words to say... 

“I told you it’s alright and just forget it.” Suga told him. “Let’s just go downstairs and eat breakfast.” He opened the door and left Garry. Once he was out and a bit far from their room, he let out another sigh. He wasn’t completely over with what happened and Garry grabbing his hand made him a bit tense. Shaking the memories away, he briskwalked down the stairs. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

Everyone was slightly surprised upon seeing Suga enter the dining hall. There were a couple of whispers floating about but he ignored it. He saw a face in the crowd looking at him with a bright smile. She stood up and walked towards him. 

“Ah, Suga-kun! You made us worry!” Shiori said and hugged him. He saw Ib look at him for a moment before returning her attention to the pancake she was eating. 

“Sorry.” He muttered. 

“Did Garry tell you anything?” Shiori asked him as she let him go. 

Suga raised his eyebrow. Was Garry supposed to tell him something? He saw Shiori frown a little at his expression. “If it was ‘sorry’, he did.” He answered. 

“So he hasn’t.” She sounded a bit dejected as if expecting something. 

“Was he supposed to tell me something else?” he asked, curious. 

“Ah, It would be better to wait for him to tell you!” she said. Just then, the door opened and Garry went in, his usual smile on his face. He greeted the others with a good morning. Suga looked behind him and their eyes met. Garry still smiled but he looked like he wasn’t sure if he was going to approach Suga or not. 

“Still haven’t started eating breakfast?” he asked. 

“No, not yet.” Suga answered back. 

“Well, let’s start before all the food goes cold.” He replied and laughed a little. Suga was a little surprised. Wasn’t he upset just a moment ago? It was a quick change of mood but still, at least he was smiling and everything seemed okay now. 

After everybody was finished eating, somebody from the staff of the house went in front and cleared his throat to gain everyone’s attention. “Excuse me, everyone! I will be announcing the challenge for today!” 

The whole room fell silent and awaited the announcement. The man looked at everyone and when he was sure that everyone was focused, he started to speak. “Today’s challenge would be to head to the backyard at 7:00pm. There would be a campfire there, as well as drinks and food. The objective is to simply have fun and bond with each other for the last time as today is already the sixth day of your stay here...” 

“Aw, I was starting to enjoy living here.” Seiko muttered. 

“Well, we were supposed to stay here for a week only, remember?” Satoshi said. Seiko only pouted. 

“Eh, I’m sure we’ll be able to keep in touch with the others if they wanted to!” Naomi said, trying to cheer Seiko up. 

“Wait, last time?” David asked. 

The man in front nodded. “Tomorrow morning, you may be able to leave as early as you want, even before sunrise. But you can only stay here up until 2:00pm. We still have to clean up the place, you know.” 

“I see.” David replied and nodded. 

“...Hey Suga.” Shiori called his name. 

“Hm?” Suga looked at her. 

“Are we going to leave really early tomorrow? I want to say goodbye to everyone before we leave. Oh, and maybe get Ib’s e-mail or home address so that we could stay in touch!” Shiori told him. 

“You have plenty of time. Tell me when you are ready to leave tomorrow.” Suga simply replied. 

“How about you? Aren’t you going to stay in touch with Garry? Or anybody else?” She asked. 

Suga just remained silent. He thought it would be better if he doesn’t stay in touch with anyone here, most of all Garry. He questioned himself on why he was being so hesitant about leaving though. Maybe once he takes his first step away from this place, everything would become better. 

“...I guess that’s a no...”Shiori frowned. She looked at Garry and looked like she was in deep thought. 

This just made Suga a lot more curious. Was it really that important? If it was, Garry would have told him earlier this morning. But then again, he was too focused on saying sorry. He made it a note to himself to approach Garry later. 

“That’s it. Hope you enjoy tonight’s campfire!” the man said and left the room. Suga stood up and was about to go to Garry when Shiori got to him first. She grabbed Garry’s hand and led him a bit farther from Suga. He raised an eyebrow at the very obviously suspicious act but decided to let them be and just ask him later. 

Meanwhile, Garry and Shiori went to the corner of the room and started to talk in hushed voices. 

“Still haven’t told him?!” 

“How the hell do you expect me to tell him?!” 

“Just tell him! You’ve got today as your last chance! Make it count!” 

“There’s still tomorrow...” 

“That’s true...but it might become too late.” 

“Why are you so insistent though? Like I said, he probably doesn’t swing that way. It’s going to be just a one-sided love.” 

“How can you be so sure?” 

“...I just know it. Plus, I told you, it’s alright even if he doesn’t ever discover. It’s not like I’m not going to love anybody else.” 

Shiori frowned. “I’m telling you, you’re going to regret that decision. If the only thing bothering you is not knowing whether Suga likes you or not, I’m going to find proof for you then. If I can prove to you that Suga likes you, will you tell him?” 

Garry looked down at the floor. If that was the case, it would be so easy. But it’s not like Shiori would find evidence, right? “Okay. If you do find proof that he does like me, then I’ll tell him. If you don’t, you’ve got to drop this whole thing. Deal?” 

“Deal.” Shiori said and held out her pinky finger. “Pinky promise.” 

“Alright. Pinky promise.” Garry said and crossed pinky fingers with Shiori. 

“Okay. Since you pinky promised, you can’t break that promise. I’ll be going to get some evidence now.”Shiori said and left. After she was gone, Ib was the next to approach him. She was holding something behind her back. 

Garry smiled at the little girl. “What do you got there, Ib?” 

She showed him a drawing of blue rose inside a red heart. “Ah, it’s for you, Garry.” 

“Really? It’s cute, Ib! Thank you!” Garry took the drawing and crouched down to Ib’s height. He patted the girl’s head. 

“I...I really like you, Garry...” Ib looked down, blushing a bit. 

“I like you, too, Ib.” Garry replied. 

“No...I mean, I really really like you...the kind where you want to be together...” Ib muttered. 

“Oh!...Oh...” Garry’s voice trailed off as he realized what Ib meant. “So...you were serious that time when you...oh...” He cleared his throat, a red shade creeping up on his face. He scratched the back of his head as he tried to think of something to say. “Look, Ib...You’re still young. I’m sure you’ll find someone else...closer to your age. Like a boy in your school!” 

Ib only responded with silence. She twiddled her thumbs and took a deep breath. After gathering courage, she spoke. “I know you like someone else...so I won’t bother you that much anymore...After all, I read a book in the library that said, ‘If you really love someone, you’ve got to let them go’. I...I wanted to give you this drawing as a symbol of my love.” She held the drawing with her two hands and thrust it towards Garry. 

“Ib...” Garry was stunned with what she said. He wasn’t really expecting this kind of conversation from Ib. He still thought that all of this was absurd but he kept that to himself. Because here in front of him was a little girl putting all her heart in doing this. He took the drawing from Ib and stared at it for a moment. He then hugged Ib tightly. 

“Thank you, Ib.” He whispered. And for a while, Ib cried in Garry’s arms. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

Shiori sat on the sofa upside down. She was still thinking hard on how to prove that there was a chance that Suga liked him back. Thinking that the lack of ideas was simply because there wasn’t enough blood going to her brain, she ended up sitting in that position. 

“Hnnn…still no good…”she muttered. She was starting to get dizzy so she decided to sit properly. Elbows on her knees, she placed her chin on her hands as a troubled expression stuck to her face. 

“Hey! Why the troubled look?” Seiko greeted as she entered the sitting room. 

“Ah, it’s nothing really! Just thinking about something.” Shiori answered and smiled. 

Seiko stared at her and she stared back. When Seiko realized that Shiori wasn’t going to say anything, she broke the silence. 

“Geez, just tell me already!” she pouted. 

“B-but…” Shiori sighed and decided to give in. Maybe she needed help in this mission of hers. Seeing that she finally broke her, Seiko smiled cheekily and turned her ear towards Shiori to show that she was listening. 

“…You see…I made a deal.” Shiori started. 

“A deal?” This perked Seiko up. “What kind of shady deal?” 

“A-ah, it’s not a shady deal! It’s just…I have to…” Shiori started to mumble the next following words. 

“What? I could barely understand what you’re saying.” Seiko said as she leaned closer to Shiori. 

“I…I have to find proof that Suga likes Garry…” Shiori’s voice went softer and softer with each word. The troubled expression on her face returned. 

“Ohh~ Sounds interesting! I’m in!” Seiko said. Shiori was just about to reject the idea when Naomi walked into the sitting room. 

“There you are! I’ve been looking everywhere for you! W-“ Before Naomi could finish whatever she was going to say, Seiko dragged her further into the room. 

“Naomi! Perfect timing! You could help us!” Seiko said. 

“E-eh?!” There was no other perfect description of Naomi’s expression except surprise. 

“Seiko-chan! It’s alright! I can proba-“ Seiko interrupted her before she finished. 

“We have to find a way to prove Garry that Suga likes him and we still haven’t thought of anything.” She explained to Naomi. 

“Not so loud! What if someone overhears you!?” Shiori whispered harshly, panicking a little bit. 

“I think you’re a little bit late on that warning…”a voice said. The three of them looked and saw Hiroshi leaning against the doorframe. “If you’re going to plan something, shouldn’t you guys be doing it a bit more quietly? You don’t want the people involved to know, would you?” 

“Since when were you there?” Seiko asked, surprised. 

“Around the ‘we have to find a way to prove Garry that Su-‘…You get the point. “he replied, glancing at the hallway outside. Nobody else seemed to be around. 

“Please don’t tell anybody.” Shiori pleaded with her eyes. 

“I don’t plan to.” He said, closing the door behind him. “I intend to lend a hand.” 

“Eeehhh?!” All three girls reacted. Nobody expected this kind of development. 

“Don’t be too surprised. If you only knew, there are quite some supporters for the two.” He went into the room and sat down on the carpet, cross-legged. “So, should we get down to business?” 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

Suga had decided to spend the day in the library. He was silently reading a book of poems at the table near the window. He usually liked the solitude quiet places offered but right now, it seemed to be distracting. 

He tried to focus on the book he was reading but his thoughts often drifted to someplace else. He would just find himself looking outside the window, chin on one hand. He knew it wouldn’t go away unless it’s been solved. 

‘Do I like him? Does he like me back? What’s going to happen after that?’ the questions just kept repeating themselves over and over. He would then also remember about what Shiori said. About Garry having something to tell him. What did he want to tell him? He was slightly anxious of the answer to that question. Maybe what Garry’s going to tell him would answer the questions that had been pestering him since last night. 

He was pulled out of his thoughts when he heard the door to the library open. He looked at the one who came in and saw Ib. Their eyes met for a moment. He noticed that Ib looked like she just cried. He wondered what happened but it wasn’t his business to pry on. 

“Hello.” Ib greeted. 

“…Hello.” He greeted back. Suga then remembered that he hasn’t thanked Ib. “Thank you for yesterday.” 

“You’re welcome.” She answered back. She went to a bookshelf and took a book. Judging by the cover, it was a children’s fairytale book. She silently went to a nearby table and began to read. She held the book in a way that it would cover her face from Suga. 

Having someone else in the room relieved Suga a little bit. He wasn’t completely alone so maybe his thoughts would get less distracting. But then, he would glance at Ib from time to time to see if she was okay. She looked like she just cried after all. He’d caught her looking at him a few times as well but didn’t really spoke of it. He just wanted to know what happened. 

“…Are you alright, Ib-chan?” Suga asked, flipping a page from the book while pretending to read. 

“Ah…I’m alright.” Ib responded from behind the book. 

“Ah, I see. Sorry for disturbing you.” The two fell silent for a moment. 

“…Are you alright, Suga-kun?” Ib asked back. 

“Oh, uh, I’m alright. Why do you ask?” he answered. 

“…Nothing. You just seemed troubled.” 

“You looked troubled, too…” 

The two fell into silence again. It felt all awkward. Suga let out a sigh and closed the book he was reading. He looked at Ib and saw her taking a peek at him from behind the book, only to hide back when she saw him looking at her. 

“Is there a problem?” Suga asked, concerned. 

“No.” Ib curtly replied. 

Another awkward silence followed. Seeing that Ib wasn’t going to say anything else, he stood up, taking the book with him. He returned it to the bookshelf and was about to go out when Ib called out to him. 

“Wait.” 

“Hm?” 

Ib put down her book and put her hand in her pocket. She took something out of it and stood up to face Suga. She was clutching it tightly with both hands, as if she didn’t want to let it go. She walked up to him and looked up at his face. 

“…Ib-chan?” Suga looked at Ib. She looked like she was about to cry again. 

Ib looked down as she took one of his hands and placed whatever she was holding on it. It was small and round. Suga wondered what it was. It seemed very important. 

“…I want you to have this. Take good care of it.” She closed Suga’s hand around it. 

“I will.” Suga said what he thought was the most appropriate reply. Ib went back to her seat and resumed reading her book. When he went out of the library, he opened his hand. He found a lemon-flavored hard candy. Not knowing why it was important, he put it in his pocket. 

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o 

The day soon passed and night came. Everybody had gone to the backyard and there it was. A huge campfire in the middle. At the side, there was a table filled with various kinds of foods and drinks. There were also plates, glasses and silverware that they needed. There was a sound system at the side with plenty of music to choose from. 

“Wow, they really prepared a feast tonight.” Yonaka commented. 

“Big brother, look! The mochi have faces drawn on them!” Yuka exclaimed, taking one and showing it to Satoshi. 

“Alright! Let’s dig in!” Yoshiki said, taking a plate and immediately filling it with the foods he wanted. Everybody followed his example and soon, they were all seated around the fire while eating and drinking merrily. They told stories and jokes and since some were daring enough, they danced around the campfire. 

Suga sat quietly while eating. He just watched them, contented with just sitting around. Shiori decided to join in and dance as well, so he was left alone. Well, not completely. At the side, not far from him, Garry was also just sitting down alone. He told them that he wasn’t really a dancing kind of guy and they left him alone. 

Meanwhile, Shiori was with Hiroshi, Seiko and Naomi. She used the dancing as an excuse to get nearer to the other guys. Once they were close, they pretended to dance while talking. 

“You know, I wouldn’t really normally do this.” Hiroshi muttered. His movements were done half-heartedly. 

“I don’t really know why we have to do this.” Naomi said. “I wasn’t really expecting to get dragged into this kind of mess…” she sent a glance at Seiko. 

“Come on! Shiori needed help and I just thought you’d be a great help to us!” Seiko said, being a lot more energetic than her companions. 

“Is everything in place?” Shiori asked. She was still unsure of ‘the plan’. Basically, it was just getting Suga a bit drunk. This was all just running on the assumption that drunk people tell more truths than when they are sober. They ended up using that plan, seeing that Hiroshi’s plan was too complicated. 

“Yep, the ‘beverages’ were in place.” Seiko said, winking at Shiori. “If they’d been drinking a lot right now, we wouldn’t have to worry about things!” 

“I really think it would have been better if we followed through with my plan…” Hiroshi muttered. 

“…Seiko, do you remember where you put the ‘beverages’?” Naomi suddenly asked. She stopped dancing as she looked at the faces of the people around them. Hiroshi noticed her movements and stopped as well to observe. It was hard to see with the campfire light but their faces had a small red tinge to them. Even the kids like Ib, Aya, and Allen. 

“Yeah. They were in the blue cooler box.” Seiko answered. “Why?” 

“…You mean, the blue cooler box where everyone had been taking their drinks from?” Naomi asked again. 

“Ye—wait what?” 

“Wait a minute! Wasn’t that blue cooler box under the table?” Shiori became alarmed. If so, everybody getting drunk is their fault! The four of them headed to the table and checked underneath it. There was a red cooler box instead. Garry noticed the group, being seated near the table. 

“Something wrong?” Garry asked, noticing the group’s grim expression. “Out of drinks?” 

“N-Nothing’s wrong! Everything’s completely a-ok!” Shiori immediately replied. 

“Where have you been getting drinks, Garry?” Hiroshi asked. 

“Oh, from the cooler box under the table. I found it when everyone was crowding over the other cooler box. Since the other cooler box is all out of drinks, I took mine from this one. Why do you ask?” Garry explained. 

“Oh, no reason! Excuse us!” Seiko said, pushing the group away from Garry. He thought they were acting weird but decided to ignore it as he took another sip from his drink. 

“I didn’t know there was another cooler box under there!” Seiko whispered harshly. 

“…This is bad.” Naomi muttered, concerned. 

“If you guys had only followed with my plan…”Hiroshi muttered, rubbing his temples. 

“What are we going to do?” Shiori asked. 

When the group left, Ib approached Garry. “Garbear~” she called. She then sat on his lap and cuddled against him. 

“…Eh? Ib? Are…you alright?” Garry asked. He didn’t mind the nickname but she was acting strange. She never cuddled with him like this before. 

“Play with me~” Ib told him, her hand wandering to his cheek. Okay, something definitely isn’t right. 

“Ah, Ib! You must be tired! Let’s go to our room already!” Shiori exclaimed and tried to lift her away from Garry. 

“No!” Ib shouted, kicking around. Shiori tried her best and slowly dragged away Ib from Garry. Ib threw a tantrum which she had never done before. Garry then noticed that the others were also being ushered inside. 

“What’s going on?” Garry asked Hiroshi, who was talking to Seitaro and Yoshiki just a few moments ago. 

“Naomi heard that the campfire is going to be put out in a moment so we’re just spreading the news.” Hiroshi answered back. 

“Oh, that’s a shame. Nevertheless, it was fun.” Garry said. “I’ll help spread the news then.” 

“It’s alright. We can handle it.” Hiroshi replied and went away. 

Garry remained seated. He didn’t really want to go to his room yet. Doing that meant that this day was really over. And it would be time to leave. Hiroshi and the others made quick work and soon, there was barely anybody there. He decided just to wait out until the ones who are going to put out the fire come. 

‘Guess Shiori never found evidence.’ Garry thought to himself. There were still a couple of drinks left so he took another bottle and twisted the bottle cap open. With nobody around, he sighed and let the troubled expression reveal itself. It’s not like anyone’s going to s- 

“You haven’t gone back to the room?” he heard someone ask him. A voice that has become familiar to him over the last few days. 

“Suga? You’re still here? I thought everyone went back already.” 

“Not yet.” Suga simply replied. Garry motioned Suga to sit down, to which the man complied. The two remained silent and watched the flames of the campfire. Not a single word passed between them. They didn’t even look at each other. 

‘Well, this is awkward.’ Garry started to feel uncomfortable. He wondered if Suga was feeling uncomfortable as well. He took a bottle from the cooler box and showed it to Suga. “Want a drink?” He said, trying to break the silence. He was a bit nervous, not knowing whether the man would accept it or not. Thankfully, he did. Garry smiled as Suga took the drink. 

“Why haven’t you gone up to our room?” Garry asked. “Didn’t expect that you’d still be here. I thought I was alone.” 

“I did. I went back down to get some air. Couldn’t fall asleep.” Suga answered, taking a gulp from his drink. 

“Oh, I see.” Garry muttered. 

“How about you?” Suga asked. 

“Oh, just wanted to watch the campfire some more…before it gets put out.” Garry said. 

Suga nodded in understanding. He settled with silence again, not knowing what to talk about. With all that had happened in the past few days, no topic seemed to be available without becoming awkward. He suddenly remembered the lemon candy Ib gave him. He took it from out of his pocket and decided to unwrap it. He was just about to eat it when he heard Garry talk. 

“Where’d you get that?” he asked. 

“Ib gave it to me.” Suga told him. 

“She still had that?” Suga raised an eyebrow at Garry’s remark. “It’s been some time since I gave that to her. I thought she already ate it.” 

Suga looked at the unwrapped candy for a moment and decided to wrap it back up with the wrapper. “I see. So that’s why it was important. It came from you.” He wondered why Ib would give him something that seems to be important to her. 

“I wonder what’s gotten into Ib…”Garry muttered, his thoughts going back to what happened this morning. 

There was a pause in their conversation. Garry thought that it meant there was nothing left to talk about when Suga spoke again. 

“Shiori mentioned something to me this morning.” He said. This made Garry’s heart jumped. Just when he was starting to feel at ease, he went back to being nervous. He calmed himself down before talking back. 

“What did she tell you?” 

“She asked me if you told me anything. Is there something you haven’t told me?” he asked. 

“Ah, it’s nothing! Forget about it!” Garry waved his hand, spilling a bit of his drink. “It’s not going to matter anyway. We’re leaving tomorrow, remember?” 

“Isn’t that supposed to be the reason why you should tell me? Especially if it concerns me?” Suge retorted. 

This struck Garry silent. He didn’t really know how to respond to that. He wasn’t expecting this kind of conversation to happen. Then again, he wasn’t expecting a lot of things to happen when he came to this place. Something inside him was screaming at him to tell Suga everything and if he doesn’t, he’s going to regret it…or maybe that was just what Shiori told him. 

“…Garry-kun.” 

“I don’t have to tell you!” Garry shouted, feeling a lot of pressure. “Shiori and I made a deal but since she couldn’t hold her part of it, I don’t have to hold up mine!” It was more of trying to assure himself. 

Suga looked at Garry, not expecting the outburst. “…Sorry. I won’t bother you about it anymore.” 

“…Don’t be.” Garry muttered. “I…didn’t mean to shout.” He placed his head between his hands, his elbows propped on his knees. “You probably hate me a lot now. After everything that had happened, who wouldn’t be? I bet you can’t wait to leave this place.” 

“…I don’t hate you.” Suga muttered. 

“I doubt that.” 

“You were not—“ 

“I know. I know. I wasn’t in the right mind. I wasn’t completely in control of my actions. But—“ 

“I told you, forget about it. It’s done and in the past.” 

“But I hurt you! I hurt you when I didn’t even want to!” Garry grabbed Suga by his shoulders. He saw a flash of fear in Suga’s eyes. 

Suga’s whole body tensed. His breath stopped for a moment and his heart felt like it was going to jump out of his chest any moment. He felt like he was going to cry and his mind went completely blank on what to do. 

Garry let go of him and looked away. “See? You’re afraid of me.” 

Suga was left stunned and speechless. He just silently looked at Garry as he tried to calm himself down. But before he could think of anything to say, Garry stood up. 

“…I’m going to prepare my stuff.” And with that, Garry went back in, leaving Suga alone. He stared at where Garry stood and let out a sigh. He then looked at the piece of candy in his hand. He could faintly hear the clock chiming twelve times inside. 

“…It’s leaving day.”


End file.
